LSAT Testing Anxiety Group Counseling: Part Deux Forum

[Shakawkaw]

I was very disappointed to see BP Ben's original attempt to quell testing anxiety ITT squashed by the TLS bureaucracy. I think it was a good idea given how much anxiety can play a role (speaking from personal experience!). While the forums can be a great resource for finding materials that can aid in tangible score increases, hopefully this thread can serve as a haven and direct support system for those who can't seem to shake the nerves!

Happy studying!

[RZ5646]

Wow that sucks. BP Ben wasn't even trying to sell anything, he was just helping people out (which the representatives of a certain other prep company have never done here). Of course you can't complain about the mods to the mods though, so I guess we're screwed.

[nlee10]

aw man. I was going to read through the whole thread later today. I suffered from anxiety on my first take in Feb.

[Winema]

[PoopNpants]

Re-taking in June and I already pooped my pants

[strodriguez3]

Re-taking in June and I already pooped my pants

Username checks out.

[Blueprint Ben]

Hey guys, thanks for the support.

I'll drop by to participate in this group therapy sesh occasionally, since it looks like I can't OP my own in this forum.

May the collective freakout continue!

[JackelJ]

Thanks for remaking this Shak! I need it since I'm on break from PT 72 and I was so tried during the first 3 sections. It was hard to stay alert. This is the first time I started the test at 1pm (usually start around 10am) and now I'm getting worried about the June start time being in the afternoon because I'm susceptible to the afternoon sleepies. I'm definitely more of a morning person

Eta: Totally bombed my PT and got my lowest score in months. I did everything right too, got enough sleep, ate a good breakfast and lunch with protein and carbs. Doesn't LSAC know humans are supposed to take a siesta at 2pm? Seems like sabotage to me...

[Shakawkaw]

Thanks for remaking this Shak! I need it since I'm on break from PT 72 and I was so tried during the first 3 sections. It was hard to stay alert. This is the first time I started the test at 1pm (usually start around 10am) and now I'm getting worried about the June start time being in the afternoon because I'm susceptible to the afternoon sleepies. I'm definitely more of a morning person

Eta: Totally bombed my PT and got my lowest score in months. I did everything right too, got enough sleep, ate a good breakfast and lunch with protein and carbs. Doesn't LSAC know humans are supposed to take a siesta at 2pm? Seems like sabotage to me...

Hey bb - I am so sorry to hear about this set back. But when you think about it, it's NOT a set back! You've learned from the experience, and you can adjust your game day plan accordingly. Have you gone over the test yet? Where do your weaknesses seem to cluster?

Hope everyone's studying is going well.

[JackelJ]

Thanks for remaking this Shak! I need it since I'm on break from PT 72 and I was so tried during the first 3 sections. It was hard to stay alert. This is the first time I started the test at 1pm (usually start around 10am) and now I'm getting worried about the June start time being in the afternoon because I'm susceptible to the afternoon sleepies. I'm definitely more of a morning person

Eta: Totally bombed my PT and got my lowest score in months. I did everything right too, got enough sleep, ate a good breakfast and lunch with protein and carbs. Doesn't LSAC know humans are supposed to take a siesta at 2pm? Seems like sabotage to me...

Hey bb - I am so sorry to hear about this set back. But when you think about it, it's NOT a set back! You've learned from the experience, and you can adjust your game day plan accordingly. Have you gone over the test yet? Where do your weaknesses seem to cluster?

Hope everyone's studying is going well.

You're right, I realized after that it's good for me to figure that out before the test. I went over the test and the 2 sections I practically fell asleep during were where almost all of my mistakes came from. I've since changed my game day plan accordingly (run and then eat lunch right before the test) and have implemented it twice so far with much better results

[NYYNYR]

When I took the test my entire body was shaking and I could barely fill out the biographical information. I still show people the scantron sometimes to make light of it (how they read any of it is beyond me). I missed the second question of the test which was a very easy question, probably solely due to anxiety. Other than that, I did pretty well, which I offer as hope for people to stay calm, even if they get outrageously over anxious (if that makes sense).

[robertrulez]

So I have a prescription for propanolol. I only really use it for interviews/presentations, but considering it for the LSAT. This is my last try so the stakes are quite high. My first try I was simply unprepared and scored low, the second I freaked out during reading comp which killed my score. Now I'm considering taking it if I start to freak out on any section.Is this a completely bad idea?

[whacka]

.

[Shakawkaw]

So I have a prescription for propanolol. I only really use it for interviews/presentations, but considering it for the LSAT. This is my last try so the stakes are quite high. My first try I was simply unprepared and scored low, the second I freaked out during reading comp which killed my score. Now I'm considering taking it if I start to freak out on any section.Is this a completely bad idea?

I would not recommend doing this if you haven't tried it during a PT. You have no idea how you might react to that during game day if you don't take it regularly, or haven't tried a test run to see if your brain is still sharp.

[Clyde Frog]

Re-taking in June and I already pooped my pants

No worries, everyone poops their pants.

[PoopNpants]

Re-taking in June and I already pooped my pants

No worries, everyone poops their pants.

Lol switched to Oct. But good luck to everyone next week

[PodPeople]

uhm, ew

[scalawag]

I took a practice test that was proctored locally under test conditions. I found myself anxious to where I freaked out constantly and scored a 147.

If you don't have a legitimate medical need this doesn't apply to you (please don't ban me) but if you do

Benzodiazepines are a slippery slope if not used intermittently, but if there is an event that justifies use its the LSAT. I guess if you go that route I would recommend obviously getting a dosage right on practice tests but not using to alleviate pre test anxiety. Just not a habit you want to pick up.

Really glad I did this today - I'm sure the actual test will be worse.

[appind]

So I have a prescription for propanolol. I only really use it for interviews/presentations, but considering it for the LSAT. This is my last try so the stakes are quite high. My first try I was simply unprepared and scored low, the second I freaked out during reading comp which killed my score. Now I'm considering taking it if I start to freak out on any section.Is this a completely bad idea?

how does one get prescription? i am considering either anti anxiety or beta blockers. many posts have suggested that they have been useful to people. i had a similar experience as the poster above about filling out the biographical info, i bubbled and erased my name, dob wrong on the sheet couple times before i could fill it.

[Jeffort]

So I have a prescription for propanolol. I only really use it for interviews/presentations, but considering it for the LSAT. This is my last try so the stakes are quite high. My first try I was simply unprepared and scored low, the second I freaked out during reading comp which killed my score. Now I'm considering taking it if I start to freak out on any section.Is this a completely bad idea?

how does one get prescription? i am considering either anti anxiety or beta blockers. many posts have suggested that they have been useful to people. i had a similar experience as the poster above about filling out the biographical info, i bubbled and erased my name, dob wrong on the sheet couple times before i could fill it.

Schedule an appointment with your primary care doctor or a psychiatrist or clinical psychologist (a psychologist that's licensed to Rx meds, some types of psychologists/therapists don't Rx meds), describe to the doctor your condition/symptoms, the reasons you are interested in anti-anxiety meds and the ones you are interested in (like beta blockers, benzo's, SSRI's or other anti-depressant class medications, antihistamines that have anti-anxiety effects such as Vistaril, other classes of anti-anxiety meds such as Buspar, etc. There are many different classes and types of meds that have anti-anxiety effects/properties) so the doctor can discuss with you the side effects and upsides/downsides of each different med before making an Rx decision.

If you do get an Rx for meds of whatever type the doctor agrees to prescribe, do many trial runs far in advance of test day to see how it affects you and to calibrate the proper dosage and timing of taking it that works best for you.

I wish you luck, anxiety sucks, but so do many of the side effects of various anti-anxiety meds. Benzos (Valium, Xanax, Ativan, Klonopin, etc. -there are many different types of benzos-) are highly addictive, tolerance builds rapidly, they can have short term memory impairment effects, and can make your thinking slow and sluggish depending on which one and the dosage. There are also various other unpleasant/negative side effects of other anti-anxiety meds. Beta blockers, such as Inderal (propranolol), can also impair your short term memory and they only block the physiological symptoms of anxiety like rapid heart rate and high blood pressure but don't treat/affect the core source of the mental anxiety in your brain. SSRI's and other types of antidepressant meds with anti-anxiety properties, MAO inhibitors and mood stabilizers have lots of various different nasty/unpleasant side effects too.

Unfortunately, most anti-anxiety meds are a double edged sword where you're trading one set of symptoms for another different set of side effect based symptoms and risks. The med-go-round of trying different anti-anxiety meds to find the right one that works well for you overall is not a fun road to travel down if the first one you get Rx'd and try doesn't turn out to work well for your symptoms and needs.

[appind]

is mentioning upcoming test anxiety good reason for the pcp to rx meds? pcp can prescribe benzos and beta blockers?

betablocker BB propanolol seems to cross blood-brain barrier, so it may affect some mental symptoms along with physical ones.

http://www.lexington-on-line.com/nafptsd2.htm

[robertrulez]

is mentioning upcoming test anxiety good reason for the pcp to rx meds? pcp can prescribe benzos and beta blockers?

betablocker BB propanolol seems to cross blood-brain barrier, so it may affect some mental symptoms along with physical ones.

http://www.lexington-on-line.com/nafptsd2.htm

That should work, just be straight up and tell them which medication you want. I did that and I explained to my doctor that I had a panic attack while giving a presentation once and she completely understood. She explained to me that she has a lot of professors and lawyers who come to her with the same problem and she prescribed them the same medication. Let me just say, propanolol was a god send my senior year of college because I had a shit ton of presentations and I absolutely killed them because of the medication. That being said, I don't think I'll be taking it for the test, I'll bring one pill just in case but I think I should be fine overall.