01-12-2008, 06:09 PM
I've not taken that exam but I do have a couple comments on the "it's not sticking" part.
That happens to me too.
It's annoying.
Grrrr!!!!
But! Here are two things I've learned.
1. A lot of times the greatest confusion is right before light begins to dawn. You read and study and get all this new information but you don't know HOW to process it all or make it make sense. That's the worst part--when loose facts are running random around your mind and then disappearing.
But after awhile I've noticed that a fact or two will really sink in. And then another one will sink in, building off of that. And then another...and another....until I finally have a fairly reasonable grip on the subject and I'm at least not tearing my hair out in despair. So don't give up....that lightbulb should be coming soon!
2. If you can, try to de-stress about it. Stress messes with your body's chemical balance and it can actually, by messing with your cortisol and stuff, cause your mind to erase things. You know how you get a mental block under pressure? That is literally because of the physical impact of stress.
So, what I would do is try to make things as easy as possible on yourself. Before you study, eat a healthy protein-rich snack. Drink a big glass of water. Put on some quiet soothing music in the background. Don't even THINK about how you have to pass this class and you're so frustrated! Just imagine you have all the time in the world and you're just there to learn a little bit right then. This can actually help you think clearer.
I'm working on the Rise and Fall of the USSR right now. I have to read a great big thick book and for awhile I tried assigning myself a certain number of pages per day. I got so stressed thinking about how I wasn't reading fast enough and how I'd probably have to read extra the next day and I'd probably flunk.....and I couldn't concentrate at ALL. So I finally decided, hey, I probably won't finish this book completely. So I'm just here to read as much as I can in the few minutes I have here and there. No big. The result was that I read much faster and retained a lot better.
It sounds like you are really knocking yourself out to prepare for this, so I really wouldn't fret too much about the test. Stressing about the test just makes your brain erase things, remember? hilarious So you're not going to think about that anymore! You're just....y'know....studying all that stuff for a lark. And isn't it fun?
Hang in there!
That happens to me too.
It's annoying.
Grrrr!!!!
But! Here are two things I've learned.
1. A lot of times the greatest confusion is right before light begins to dawn. You read and study and get all this new information but you don't know HOW to process it all or make it make sense. That's the worst part--when loose facts are running random around your mind and then disappearing.
But after awhile I've noticed that a fact or two will really sink in. And then another one will sink in, building off of that. And then another...and another....until I finally have a fairly reasonable grip on the subject and I'm at least not tearing my hair out in despair. So don't give up....that lightbulb should be coming soon!2. If you can, try to de-stress about it. Stress messes with your body's chemical balance and it can actually, by messing with your cortisol and stuff, cause your mind to erase things. You know how you get a mental block under pressure? That is literally because of the physical impact of stress.
So, what I would do is try to make things as easy as possible on yourself. Before you study, eat a healthy protein-rich snack. Drink a big glass of water. Put on some quiet soothing music in the background. Don't even THINK about how you have to pass this class and you're so frustrated! Just imagine you have all the time in the world and you're just there to learn a little bit right then. This can actually help you think clearer.
I'm working on the Rise and Fall of the USSR right now. I have to read a great big thick book and for awhile I tried assigning myself a certain number of pages per day. I got so stressed thinking about how I wasn't reading fast enough and how I'd probably have to read extra the next day and I'd probably flunk.....and I couldn't concentrate at ALL. So I finally decided, hey, I probably won't finish this book completely. So I'm just here to read as much as I can in the few minutes I have here and there. No big. The result was that I read much faster and retained a lot better.
It sounds like you are really knocking yourself out to prepare for this, so I really wouldn't fret too much about the test. Stressing about the test just makes your brain erase things, remember? hilarious So you're not going to think about that anymore! You're just....y'know....studying all that stuff for a lark. And isn't it fun?
Hang in there!
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