What is Test Anxiety? Test anxietyis experienced as excessive anxiety while preparing for and/or taking a test. Anxiety can manifest itself physically (e.g., headaches, stomach upset, sweating, rapid heart beat, and/or dry mouth), emotionally, (e.g., disappointment, uncontrollable crying or laughing, feelings of helplessness), behaviorally (e.g., fidgeting, pacing, substance abuse, avoidance) and cognitively (e.g., 'going blank', difficulty concentrating, negative self-talk, comparing yourself to others).
Test anxiety creates a kind of "noise" or "mental static" in the brain that blocks one's ability to absorb, retain, and recall information and can greatly impair one's ability to comprehend and reason.