Dealing with exam blues

As exams near, it’s not just parents and counselling cells, but even religious bodies that are stepping in to help students to cope with exam jitters. The stress is so bad that children are unable to sleep or eat.
As examinations draw closer, pressure on students is mounting too. Every year, parents and counselling cells do their bit to relieve student of stress, but this year, religious bodies in Kanpur are also stepping in to counsel and support the students.We talk to students, besides academicians and religious bodies, to find out what help is at hand for the city’s student.
All nerves
Ankit Kushwah, a BA final year student is quite worried about how he would fare in his exams. “I have seen that whenever I am under pressure of performing well I start forgetting whatever I learn and this is happening to me this time too. This is really bothering me and I don’t know how to deal with this problem. Another college student, Archana Singh, says, “Though I am good at studies but for the last two years, I have been getting really nervous during my examinations.”
Some counsel
Even as students feel stressed, educational institutions are stepping in to give them all the support they need. Vivek Diwedi, principal of Brahmanand Degree College says, “I feel this is the time when students really need a lot of support, as they are under a lot of pressure to perform well. In view of this I have recently instructed my counselling cell to continuously stay in touch with students so that their problems are dealt with and they are not under any stress. The counselling cell not only provides psychological support to students but also gives tips to perform well in the examinations.” KK Tiwari, principal of Vikramjit Singh Sanatan Dharma College lets in, “We used to have a counselling cell for students earlier but it had been dysfunctional since the past one year. But in this session, I ensured that the cell is up and running. I have also asked the counsellors to conduct sessions to motivate students.”
Getting spiritual
It's not just educational institutes that are dealing with pre-examination jitters but religious bodies too. Shubhram Behl, who is head of a religious trust in the city recently has started a helpline for students in order to make them stress-free. “Religious guidance enlightens students, helping them to perform well. It also helps in keeping them away from negative thoughts. There have been many cases in the past of students committing suicide because of excessive academic pressure. I wanted to check this problem, and that is why I launched this helpline so that students could benefit from it.”
Radha Kant Das, an IITian and coordinator of Bhakti Vedant Club, that’s part of a religious body, informs, “As exams near, we organise motivational sessions for students, every Saturday. During these sessions we tell them how to focus on their studies and keep stress at bay. We also explain what wrong they would do to themselves and people related to them if they took any wrong step due to the pressure.”
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