Healthy habits for the mind

HEADING into VCE exams can be a stressful time for students — but forming good habits while preparing for the exam period can help keep your mind healthy.

Geelong mental health services see spikes in requests for help in the lead-up to exams, as stressed students look for ways to settle VCE-related anxiety.

Chris Mackey and Associates adolescent psychologist Allie Humphries said it was important for students to remember “you are not your ATAR score”.

“Your ATAR score’s not a measure of your intelligence,” she said.

“I see that a lot with young people, they’ll come in and they’ll feel really pressured and they’re starting to lose sight (that) this is just a brief moment in time,” she said.

She said it was important to maintain perspective and see finishing high school as a positive accomplishment.

She advised VCE students to remember that there were multiple pathways to get where they wanted to go in terms of a career.

Ms Humphries encouraged students to maintain their routines, keep in touch with their usual friends and have fun activities scheduled to look forward to as a way of breaking up the stress of the exam period.

Moments that could result in high stress include the minutes before and after an exam when students might be keen to know what could be, or was, contained in the exam.

Ms Humphries said it could be good to circumvent the potentially stressful moment by making an agreement among friends that the exam would not be discussed directly before or after it.

“That initial walk out moment, their minds are still racing, that’s when you can get triggered,” Ms Humphries said.

If experiencing panic or acute anxiety, Ms Humphries said sooth- ing methods that could be used included breathing exercises, or visiting the bathroom to splash some cold water on your face.

Practising deep breathing exercises in advance, which could be used in stressful times in the exam period, could be useful, Ms Humphries said.

Ms Humphries also suggested students create a calming playlist of music prior to exam period, and playing it on a walk around the block when they need a break.

Mental health resources can be found at au.reachout.com/ and headspace.org.au/

YOUR ATAR SCORE’S NOT A MEASURE OF YOUR INTELLIGENCE. I SEE THAT A LOT WITH YOUNG PEOPLE, THEY’LL COME IN AND THEY’LL FEEL REALLY PRESSURED AND THEY’RE STARTING TO LOSE SIGHT ( THAT) THIS IS JUST A BRIEF MOMENT IN TIME. PSYCHOLOGIST ALLIE HUMPHRIES