What Test Anxiety Really Feels Like
If you’ve ever walked into a test feeling confident—only to blank out, freeze up, or panic the moment the timer starts—you’re not alone. Test anxiety is incredibly common, especially among high school and college students. It’s not just “nerves”—it can seriously impact performance, even when you know the material. The good news? With the right tools and a structured plan, you can move from overwhelmed to prepared—and even confident.
Why I Created the Test Anxiety Tactics Workbook
As a School Psychologist and Licensed Educational Psychologist who has worked with students for over 17 years, I’ve seen how test anxiety shows up in many forms: racing thoughts, shaky hands, mind blanks, or even full-on dread the night before. That’s why I created the Test Anxiety Tactics Workbook—a 96-page guide filled with real strategies to help students calm their bodies, manage their thoughts, and perform with confidence. The workbook can be used by counselors, therapists, school psychologists, or individually by the students themselves if they are in middle school, high school, or college.
The workbook is available in several formats, including a pre-printed workbook on Amazon, or a printable and/or fillable PDF copy for your computer.
Step 1: Identify Your Personal Anxiety Patterns
So how do you break the cycle of panic and start feeling more in control? It begins with understanding what’s really triggering your anxiety. The workbook walks you through this with self-reflection exercises that help you recognize your personal symptoms and patterns—whether it’s perfectionism, fear of failure, or negative self-talk that spirals out of control. Awareness is the first step toward change.
Step 2: Train Your Body to Stay Calm
Next, you need to train your body to feel safe in testing environments. Test anxiety is as much physical as it is mental. That’s why the workbook includes step-by-step breathing techniques, grounding exercises, and body-based calming strategies you can practice at home—and use during the test itself. These tools give your nervous system something to anchor to when anxiety starts creeping in.
1. Practice “Pairing” a Calming Scent with Study Time
Our brains form associations between environments and emotions. You can use this to your advantage by introducing a calming scent—like lavender, vanilla, or peppermint—while you study or do relaxation exercises. Then, bring that same scent (on a lotion, essential oil bracelet, or scented hand wipe) with you on test day.
Why it works: Your brain begins to associate the scent with calm focus. Smelling it during the test can help “bring you back” to that relaxed state you practiced.
Example: Dab a small amount of lavender lotion on your wrist during study sessions, then use that same lotion just before the test begins.
🫁 2. Use a 4-7-8 Breathing Pattern to Reset Your Nervous System
Your breath is one of the fastest ways to communicate safety to your brain and body. The 4-7-8 breathing technique is a simple way to slow down your heart rate and calm racing thoughts.
How to do it:
- Inhale through your nose for 4 seconds
- Hold your breath for 7 seconds
- Exhale slowly through your mouth for 8 seconds
- Repeat 3–4 times
When to use it: Right before a test starts, when you begin to feel overwhelmed, or as part of your bedtime routine to improve sleep before a big exam.
🤲 3. Ground Yourself with Touch and Physical Anchoring
Touch is a powerful regulator of the nervous system. Try using a physical object—like a smooth stone, fidget tool, or even pressing your hands together—to stay grounded when anxiety strikes.
Try this exercise:
Place both feet flat on the floor. Press your fingertips together or hold a small, textured object in your hand. Focus on the sensation for 30 seconds. Notice what you feel (warmth, texture, pressure). This shifts your attention away from racing thoughts and back into your body.
Bonus tip: Keep the same object with you during study sessions and the test to strengthen the calming association—just like with scent pairing.
Step 3: Rewire Your Thoughts with CBT
Once your body is calmer, it’s time to work on your thinking habits. Many students unknowingly sabotage their performance with thoughts like “I’m going to fail” or “Everyone else is smarter than me.” The workbook uses proven Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) techniques to help you identify these unhelpful beliefs and replace them with supportive, realistic self-talk that builds confidence over time.
What Is CBT? (And How It Helps with Test Anxiety)
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is one of the most effective, research-backed approaches for managing anxiety—including test anxiety. It’s based on a simple but powerful idea:
💡 The way you think affects how you feel—and how you behave.
CBT helps you recognize unhelpful thought patterns (like “I’m going to fail” or “I’m not smart enough”) and teaches you how to challenge and reframe those thoughts into more realistic, empowering beliefs.
🔄 The CBT Model: Thoughts → Feelings → Behaviors
Let’s break it down:
- Thoughts: What you say to yourself (e.g., “I’ll probably fail this test.”)
- Feelings: How that thought makes you feel (e.g., anxious, panicked, overwhelmed)
- Behaviors: What you do in response (e.g., procrastinate, freeze during the test, or avoid studying)
CBT helps you interrupt that cycle by changing yo
✏️ Example 1: Before CBT
Situation: You have a big math test tomorrow.
Automatic Thought: “I’m terrible at math. I always fail.”
Feeling: Nervous, hopeless
Behavior: Avoid studying, don’t sleep well, freeze during the test
✅ Example 2: After Practicing CBT
Situation: You still have a big math test tomorrow.
Reframed Thought (CBT): “I’ve struggled in the past, but I’ve been preparing. I’ll do my best and use my strategies.”
Feeling: More calm, capable
Behavior: Review material, use breathing exercises, stay focused
Notice how the situation didn’t change—the test is still coming—but your reaction is completely different because your thoughts are more helpful.ur thoughts, which then improves your feelings and behaviors.
🧩 How the Test Anxiety Tactics Workbook Uses CBT
The workbook helps students:
- Identify their own common anxious thoughts
- Learn how those thoughts impact their test performance
- Challenge and practice replacing negative thoughts with more balanced ones
- Practice positive self-talk before and during exams
- Build confidence through repeated reflection and CBT-based journaling
You don’t have to “think positive” in a fake way. CBT helps you think in a more accurate and empowering way—so you’re mentally prepared, not just hopeful.
Step 4: Create a Personalized Test-Day Plan
Finally, the workbook helps you create your own personalized test-day routine, including study strategies that work with your brain—not against it. You’ll also build a plan for the morning of the test, what to do if anxiety strikes mid-exam, and how to debrief afterward to improve over time. It’s a full system for staying calm, focused, and prepared.
Take the First Step Toward Confidence
If you’re ready to stop letting anxiety control your performance, take the first step today. The Test Anxiety Tactics Workbook is available now on Amazon or on the SoCal Educational Evaluations website as a printable or fillable PDF. It’s more than a workbook—it’s a roadmap to becoming the calm, confident test-taker you’ve always wanted to be.
Need a Little Extra Support? The Video Course Can Help
If you’re working through the Test Anxiety Tactics Workbook and feel like you need more structure, guidance, or encouragement along the way, the full video course is the perfect next step. This self-paced course walks you through each section of the workbook with short, easy-to-follow video lessons that bring the strategies to life. You’ll see calming techniques demonstrated, learn how to apply mindset shifts in real time, and hear real talk about what to do when anxiety shows up. It’s a great option if you learn best through visuals or need extra support turning the workbook strategies into real habits.