MANAGING EXAM STRESS: 4. Coffee & Alcohol

AVOID STRESS ENHANCING DRUGS

Caffeine is a very powerful drug- its acts directly on the central nervous system and heightens emotional arousal. You will have enough emotional arousal just from worrying about exams; it seems an extremely bad idea to fill your system up with a drug that will activate that.

BEWARE OF ALCOHOL

Alcohol may help you to feel relaxed but at a serious cost. The reason why alcohol is so popular as a social drug is because it has an amnesiac effect – it helps you to forget. So people use it to relax because it helps them to forget what’s bothering them – at least for the time being. The problem is that alcohol is not selective in what it helps you to forget. During exam times forgetting is exactly what you don’t need to do!


Now read: MANAGING EXAM STRESS: 5. Aromatherapy & Positive self-statements

This article was written by Cindy Dring ofStudent's Services Health Promotion. If you have problems or worries you feel you would like to talk about confidentially, contact Cindy at 091-492048. Alternatively e-mail her at cindy.dring@nuigalway.ie or just drop in to Aras Ni Eimhigh.