Sleep trouble before Exam

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sreak1089: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 379; Joined: Wed Jun 03, 2009 3:05 amFollowed by: 1 member; Thanked: 19 times; GMAT Score:690

by sreak1089 » Tue Aug 04, 2009 3:59 am

Folks,

these days I am finding it hard to put myself to sleep. What ever that I study the previous day, seem to linger around in my mind. Yesterday I studied coordinate geometry and all night I was only seeing coordinates, x & y-intercepts running in every quadrant of my brain

)

Frustrated, I couldnot put myself till 4:00 am, I woke up and studied number properties for about 3 hours. Rest of the day, I slept for about 2-3 hrs. It has not been a productive day for me at all

Does anybody face similar problem???? How do u cope??

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Source: Beat The GMAT — GMAT Strategy | Tue Aug 04, 2009 3:59 am

DanaJ: Site Admin; Posts: 2567; Joined: Thu Jan 01, 2009 10:05 amFollowed by: 550 members; Thanked: 712 times; GMAT Score:770

by DanaJ » Tue Aug 04, 2009 8:06 am

I did not face any such problems, but unfortunately my little brother did, before one of his most important exams. The result: he had a nervous breakdown and spent about three weeks in a mental institution, missing his undergrad admissions as well.

I'm not trying to put pressure on you, but here's what I've learned: don't underestimate insomnia! It's one of the most important signs that you're waaay yo stressed. You're probably putting too much pressure on yourself... Remember, the GMAT is just another test and you can take it as many times as you feel comfortable.

I myself suffered from insomnia in my high school, but after exercising, drinking warm milk and honey in the evening and taking a long shower just before going to bed I was able to "cure" myself.

All the best and I hope you can unwind soon!

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zuleron: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 223; Joined: Fri Apr 17, 2009 3:50 pmFollowed by: 4 members; Location: Philly, USA; Thanked: 76 times; GMAT Score:750

by zuleron » Tue Aug 04, 2009 8:55 am

The easiest way is to use Tynenol PM or sth like that. Or one of the many short-term insomnia drugs e.g. Ambien... but watch for side effects.

Of course the most fun way to battle insomnia is to get totally and irretriveably drunk and pass out...

but then again you'd have to deal with the hangover which i'm guessing just might affect your next day's performance.

What I would suggest in all seriousness is to go to a gym like at 8pm and work out like a fiend for 2 hours (1 hour weights 45 mins cardio; 15 mins sauna)... and then eat dinner at 10pm... By 11pm you will be so exahausted you will be out like a light as soon as your head hits the pillow. And you will wake up refreshed. This is MUCH healthier than becoming an alcoholic or a sleeping pill junkie.

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4seasoncentre: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 211; Joined: Thu Apr 09, 2009 12:17 pm; Thanked: 12 times; GMAT Score:680

by 4seasoncentre » Tue Aug 04, 2009 8:58 am

I meant to get sleep the night before the test but just couldn't- I was too nervous. But things worked out ok.

I must have needed to wake up at 5am to get to the test centre (I was very early, but wanted to make sure I had a buffer in the case the subway broke down or something).

I am not recommending sleep medication, but they might be something you want to consider to get you back onto a sleep cycle.

Also, I think even if you are tossing around in bed and not actually asleep, at least your body is not doing anything so it is somewhat recuperating. Some light music might help you get the thoughts of DS, CR, SC etc out of your head.

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moonshine: Junior | Next Rank: 30 Posts; Posts: 29; Joined: Sat Jul 11, 2009 2:46 am

by moonshine » Tue Aug 04, 2009 10:20 am

Ok seriously, your test is around the corner, don't try any of these pills or new routine things - i know it would wreck my focus for sure!

I can completely understand your problem, not getting enough sleep can be a big issue especially if you need to focus on details in a gruelling test.

I have been an insomniac pretty much all my life and I know that taking a pill can completely throw you off balance if you're not used to it. Artificial drug induced sleep is of no help anyways. But you may want to try a mild anti-anxiety drug (only if your doc says recommends it). Please NOT the night before your exam.

Here's what works for me - reading. Please take boring RC passages to bed, it works wonders. I find quant too stimulating and it's been keeping me awake at nights too.

Don't let it get to you. It's all in your mind, try to relax. Take a little break... I'm sure the adrenaline will kick in at the exam and you wont care about how much sleep you got the night before!

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Bara: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 383; Joined: Sun Oct 26, 2008 5:20 pmFollowed by: 21 members; Location: Online Conferencing - in person in select cities.; Thanked: 55 times

by Bara » Tue Aug 04, 2009 8:35 pm

We help MANY people who have trouble sleeping the night before this high-stakes exam.

Things I'd recommend, among other things and in no particular order.

1. listen to music that relaxes you. that might be classical, it might be folk. Whatever it is, have a stash nearby.
2. learn self hypnosis and EFT. These are two techniques which will help you get into the best mindset
3. make sure you're getting exercise, eating well, and nourishing other aspects of yourself.
4. do something nice for yourself every day. seriously.
5. spend 5 - 10 minutes when you wake up to start the day right, and before you go to sleep to have closure with the day
6. listen to the GMAT audio sampler on our website - - it should help out with getting you more relaxed.<https://testprepny.com/pages/products_gmat.htm>
7. whatever DOES relax you, massage, running, chilling on the couch, throwing a football with friends, etc., make sure you incorporate that into your life.

Good Luck!

Bara Sapir, MA, CHt, CNLP
Founder/CEO City Test Prep
Maximize your Score, Minimize your Stress!
GMAT Badass and Test Anxiety Relief Expert
SPEEDREADING: https://citytestprep.com/mindflow-workshops/
ANXIETY RELIEF: https://citytestprep.com/mindfulness-therapy/
BOOK: https://tinyurl.com/TPNYSC
TV: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=McA4aqCNS-c

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yogami: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 170; Joined: Tue May 26, 2009 12:00 pm; Thanked: 5 times

by yogami » Tue Aug 04, 2009 8:44 pm

I think you need to address the inner game issue here more than applying a patch. Become outcome independent. Come what may and I will brace it should be your frame of mind. I used to feel nervous on all occasions. GRE, exams, interviews, asking a hot girl out. Little did I realize that I was giving external factors power and let them dictate my emotions instead of me being objective to the outcome. I was putting unnecessary value on those without realising how high value I was!!!!
And even If I bomb a test then that is not the end of the world, I can take one more. Time is of the essence for only the ones who care about time. I don't as time is man made. So If I bomb my GMAT there will be another time when I might decimate it. GMAT is not the end of the world!!! Internalize this frame and all your sleep problems will go away and you will sleep like a baby.

200 or 800. It don't matter no more.

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sreak1089: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 379; Joined: Wed Jun 03, 2009 3:05 amFollowed by: 1 member; Thanked: 19 times; GMAT Score:690

by sreak1089 » Tue Aug 04, 2009 9:22 pm

Thanks a lot for all those responses. I think I was putting lot of stress on myself thinking of 700+ score .. I am not going to bother too much on the score I will get..I will keep pluging away and make most of the time left.

@moonshine, that was good suggestion to do RC @ sleep time. Quant has been quite stimulating and keeps your mind quite charged up..

I am not gonna take any pills, I will do some excercises and Yoga and watcha movie and will get myself relaxed.

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Bara: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 383; Joined: Sun Oct 26, 2008 5:20 pmFollowed by: 21 members; Location: Online Conferencing - in person in select cities.; Thanked: 55 times

by Bara » Wed Aug 05, 2009 3:22 am

The way the brain 'works' best is to have intense study, then time away from that study. It processes and integrates.

Do what you can to 'impose' this on yourself.

Yoga and a movie sound perfect.

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mharv: Senior | Next Rank: 100 Posts; Posts: 36; Joined: Mon Oct 13, 2008 10:14 pm; Location: Bangalore; Thanked: 2 times; GMAT Score:390

by mharv » Wed Aug 05, 2009 4:09 am

DanaJ wrote:Itaking a long shower just before going to bed I was able to "cure" myself.

The shower (cold) in the evening freshens me enough to do 2 RC passages, and a few CRs and if you are up for it a few SCs too. This is for only 2 hours, then I sleep and then 5am-8am I am in a different world, where there is no GMAT.

then from 9-10am I do as many quants problems as I can. Seriously, as many as I can .. sometimes its 40 questions.

Regards,
Arvind

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Bara: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 383; Joined: Sun Oct 26, 2008 5:20 pmFollowed by: 21 members; Location: Online Conferencing - in person in select cities.; Thanked: 55 times

by Bara » Wed Aug 05, 2009 6:09 am

You guys are all superstars!!

I hope more people add to this topic. It's really important stuff.

Keep in mind, too, that the night before the night before a test is more important than the night before a test.

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sreak1089: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 379; Joined: Wed Jun 03, 2009 3:05 amFollowed by: 1 member; Thanked: 19 times; GMAT Score:690

by sreak1089 » Wed Aug 05, 2009 6:21 am

Hi Bara, why is the night before the night before test is more important?

Bara wrote:You guys are all superstars!!

I hope more people add to this topic. It's really important stuff.

Keep in mind, too, that the night before the night before a test is more important than the night before a test.

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Bara: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 383; Joined: Sun Oct 26, 2008 5:20 pmFollowed by: 21 members; Location: Online Conferencing - in person in select cities.; Thanked: 55 times

by Bara » Wed Aug 05, 2009 9:27 am

The body likes to sleep. The brain and muscles repair, the mind integrates information it learns. Sleep helps us thrive intellectually and emotionally.

The night before an exam, despite your best efforts, you don't get sleep, it's not that big of a deal: it shouldn’t significantly affect your performance on test day if you’re well rested from the previous night.

It’s much easier to sleep two nights before the test when you’re not anticipating having to wake up and be at the testing site on time.

If you lose TWO nights of sleep...that is a problem since you'll have not slept well for two nights...

NOTE:
Not sleeping for 24 hours is the equivalent of having a blood alcohol level of .10, the legal limit in most states!

Make sense?

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zuleron: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 223; Joined: Fri Apr 17, 2009 3:50 pmFollowed by: 4 members; Location: Philly, USA; Thanked: 76 times; GMAT Score:750

by zuleron » Wed Aug 05, 2009 10:32 am

The night before the night. I never thought of that... but it makes intuitive sense. I read somewhere that the body and mind can perform at a high level with little or no sleep for a max of about 40 hours and then no matter who you are or what drug you are on, your performance falls and without sleep your system WILL shut down on you... otherwise it would be impossible to pull all nighters and still Ace a 2.5 hour exam the following afternoon (a feat many college kids perform during finals).

So for me, who uses physical exercise to get fantastic rest should do my heavy gym routine two nights before the exam...

Great advice! Thanks!

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Bara: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 383; Joined: Sun Oct 26, 2008 5:20 pmFollowed by: 21 members; Location: Online Conferencing - in person in select cities.; Thanked: 55 times

by Bara » Wed Aug 05, 2009 10:55 am

...and thanks for that little tidbit. totally helpful to lots of people here, I'm sure!

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