The National Secondary Education Examination (Enem) is one of the main gateways to public universities in Brazil. In addition to marathon questions about different areas of knowledge, students need to face fear, pressure and anxiety. The tests take place next Sunday (21) and on October 28 across the country.
While some students feel safer studying until the last minute, others prefer to save the moments before the test to rest. Specialists point out that respecting the body’s limits is essential to achieve a good result.
Psychologist Renato Caminha, master in social and personality psychology, explains that the maintenance of the circadian cycle can help control stress and anxiety before the exam. The human body works according to an internal biological clock that regulates the body’s physiological activities and processes in a 24-hour cycle, called the circadian rhythm.
“Having good hours of sleep and light nutrition, avoiding stimulating foods, meditating or maintaining respiratory muscle relaxation strategies are some psychological preparation recommendations and also serve to avoid cognitive distractions”, says the specialist who works as a professor and researcher in the field of mental health.
According to the expert, preparing for the test involves more than the cognitive aspects, also focusing on factors involved in mental health that can help balance emotions.
“Some people are more anxious and, when reviewing and studying before the exam, they can have a complicating factor, increased stress. We have to think that the more stressed we go to the place, the more we will have a behavior of dispersion of the focus of attention, which is linked to greater concentration at the time of the test”, he explains.
Some strategies can make the exam day less stressful, such as visiting the exam site if it is a little-known place. With familiarity, it is possible to calculate how long it will take to arrive and plan to leave the house in advance.
Seeking ways to relax is also a way to awaken in the body the release of hormones such as oxytocin, which calms the body. Socializing with friends and family can be a pleasant alternative and a healthy distraction from pre-test tensions.
In this sense, the family has an essential supportive role, avoiding excessive demands.
“It is essential that she validates, welcomes and supports without demands and level of demand. The family is one of the factors of social interaction and can serve as an escape valve to de-stress, whether at lunch, dinner, a date together, a get-together or emotional manifestations”, he said.
Importance of psychological preparation
The Covid-19 pandemic interrupted school activities in Brazil and around the world for over a year. In this period of social distancing, mental disorders such as anxiety and depression increased globally. According to studies, young people were the most affected in terms of impacts on mental health.
In addition to resolving issues, carrying out the ENEM involves resuming plans, dreams and life goals.
According to psychologist Renato Caminha, psychological preparation must involve the capacity for emotional regulation and intervention techniques in times of crisis.
“Each day the demand increases in this test, like a marathon, and preparatory courses and their teachers have encouraged students to undergo psychotherapeutic follow-up to really understand emotional regulation”, he said.
Psychologist Fabiane de Faria explains that each student has a different learning system, which can be more visual or auditory, more focused on reading or writing. However, everyone is subjected to the same protocol that involves spending hours sitting and concentrating on hundreds of questions.
“It is a challenge that requires physical and mental preparation. Try to focus on the here and now, if you can even do concentration exercises or meditation it helps a lot in focusing. Everything possible so as not to disperse with other things is valid”, says Fabiane, creator of the online platform aterapia.
What clothes should I wear?
For style consultant Juliana Lenz, clothes play an important role on the day of the ENEM. According to Lenz, comfortable clothing can help relieve tension.
“The ideal is to wear knitted clothes, such as a sweatshirt. If you opt for jeans, it’s important to choose the most flexible, with a little stretch and not so ‘hard’, since you’ll be sitting for hours”, says the consultant.
According to Lenz, comfort should also be a priority when choosing shoes. “For feet, flat shoes or sneakers with a nice and comfortable sock to bring you well-being during the race. Avoid heels and open sandals because of the temperature of the air conditioning, we don’t know what it will be like”, he adds.
For the consultant, an old tip from mothers and grandmothers is worth: take a cardigan to warm up, anticipating possible changes in temperature. Regarding colors, she recommends avoiding the use of red pieces, which can cause irritation, discomfort or excitement, and bet on yellow that stimulates the mind.
Reference: CNN Brasil
