Results day – How to look after your wellbeing | Blog

Results day – How to look after your wellbeing

It's that time of year, waiting for the exam results. When we talk about exam stress we assume it's the studying and revising or taking the exam but the stress caused in waiting for results is also very common. You have put in all the hard work and all that you can do and now it's the waiting game.

It's important to remember that feeling worried anxious or apprehensive about waiting for important news is normal.

exam stress

Results day can cause anxiety and stress because the outcome of these results can determine future education or employment. It can be stressful when we don't know what to expect or that we can't go back and make changes to answers that we think are wrong. It's important to recognise the signs:

Feeling overwhelmed

Poor sleep

Less motivation

Worrying

Comfort eating or not eating at all

Thinking negatively

Feeling irritable

Low confidence

You can get stuck thinking that life is just about success or failure. But for most people they have had to have things go wrong, they have had to fail to get them to success. Its about learning to keep going - it's the root to success. If you think there are no second chances you can limit your ability to manage and you can get yourself too stressed.

We can get caught in thinking in unhelpful ways, which keeps us in the low mood trap.

Unhelpful ways of thinking make you feel bad

We all can think like this from time to time

It can be a problem when they prevent us from doing things

Our thinking can be black and white, believing that people or things can be good or bad, right or wrong. When actually there may be some shades of grey.

Mind reading, we assume we know what others are thinking. This can include what they think about us. We think our parents will be disappointed if we fail an exam but we don't know that- perhaps they will be more understanding. People may not think as negatively as we think.

Catastrophising, always thinking the worst. Should, Musts, Ought's, putting pressure on ourselves and have unrealistic expectations. ' I must get the best result' ' I must not fail'

These thoughts will just keep you stressed, if you get these thoughts remind yourself that it isn't helpful thinking.

Try and get some perspective and be your own positive coach, try not to be self critical. You can only do your best. We feel like failing can be the wort thing ever. It does matter but sometimes we just have to realise that we can only do our best. If we don't try we will never know. Sometimes failing can help you to be stronger and help you learn you can cope and find a way around it.

It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you have to live so cautiously that you might as well not lived at all - JK Rowling

Here are some handy tip of how to take care of yourself and keep calm in the lead up to results day:

Look after yourself - try not to get lost in a cycle of panic and stress. Take time out each day, try and eat well, socialise spending time with people who make you feel good, exercise or go for a walk and don't lock yourself away.

Take a break from devices - always checking for updates about results day will lead you to feel anxious. Have a break from technology and try reading a book instead or taking a walk.

Talk it out - everyone around you will understand if you are feeling stressed, worried or anxious. Rather than bottle things up have a chat with someone and talk about any worries. Just speaking to someone about your feelings can help you de-stress.

Get quality sleep - losing sleep or a lack of sleep can really impact your mood, your emotions and can make you feel more anxious or worried. Value your sleep, rather than late night box set binges get an early night, relax and take a break from screens before you go to bed.

Look after your physical health - Getting enough sleep, staying physically active and eating a balanced diet can make stress easier to manage. Stress can sometimes make these things difficult to look after. But even small changes can make a big difference.

Spend time in nature - This can help to reduce stress and improve wellbeing. You could try going for a walk in a green space, taking care of indoor plants, or spending time with animals.

Feeling stressed poster

More tips:

Surround yourself with supportive people - friends and family can help you celebrate the real highs, but also provide support during bad times. Reach out to those who can be a support network for you, and help you grow.

Try not to compare - everyone is different, try not to compare results with others. Comparisons can sometimes make you feel worse so just try and focus on yourself.

Listen to a podcast or your favourite music - Listening to music can elevate our mood and makes us feel good, and podcasts can keep our brain engaged whilst we are doing other tasks. We have lots of podcasts available to listen to for free on our website, including a podcast that talks about what self-care is and why it is so important in maintaining our wellbeing.

Practice the five ways to wellbeing - a big part of self-care is not just looking after how we feel right now, but also maintaining our wellbeing as a way of life. A great way to maintain how we feel is to follow the Five Ways to Wellbeing.

Try square breathing - anxiety can lead to quick shallow breaths which can make things worse. Try square breathing which involves 4 basic steps each lasting 4 seconds. 1: breathing in, 2: holding the breath, 3: breathing out, 4: holding the breath. This technique is quick to learn, easy to do and can be really helpful in reducing stress.

Support-1

Support

Don't feel embarrassed about asking for help. Mental illness can be lonely and really overwhelming, it can be hard to cope on your own.

If you are struggling with your mental health, ask for help.

Our free online workshops are here to help you.

Whether it's focusing on some self-care with our Relaxation Station, making improvements to your Sleep, or we can give tips and techniques to help us to manage anxiety with our Anxiety Toolkit workshop.

Our workshops are easy to book via our website - choose the workshop you'd like to join, select a suitable date, complete the short form and we'll send you a joining link.

You can view our full range of online Workshops here