Just finished the NCLEX an hour ago...

Oh what a day! And it's only just passed noon! I don't know if I had more anxiety before taking the test or if I have more now. 75 questions, maybe 10 or so SATA's, a dozen priority, seemed like alot of meds (which are the ones I dread the most), also seemed like lots of diet questions. I used the ear plugs and tried to use the "noise-canceling" device, but had to take them off because the pounding of my heart was distracting me.

The worst thing is, it was not as difficult as I expected it to be. From what I gathered from other posts, people who leave thinking they did well usually don't. Scares me! And the last question was a simple question on the nitro-patch. :/

But... I got the good pop-up! I am trying to trust the thousands of posts on this site about the accuracy of this, but it is difficult.

I studied using a wide variety of qbanks and review books. They all seemed to have their own theme. After taking so many Saunders or Lippencott questions, you get the rhythm of it and can figure out what they are looking for in the answer, sort of. I found this to be a little bit of a disadvantage because I couldn't tell if I was really gaining anything from it. Then I came across the Kaplan testing readiness tests online and was amazed at how much more difficult they seemed! They were much more analytical and really took thought and concentration. I wish I had gone to Kaplan earlier (our school promoted the Hurst Review - which I got very little out of), and would recommend Kaplan to anyone studying for the test. I thought the Kaplan questions were much more difficult than the NCLEX ones. The only disadvantage: no SATA's (at least not on the readiness exams).

So now the wait begins to see if the PVT really does work. BTW: Does anyone know if the quick results in 48H counts the weekends? Will I be able to know on Sunday or Tuesday?

Tips for future test-takers:

#1 Control your anxiety! I am not normally a nervous test taker and did not anticipate the feelings I had leading up to today! I had told myself that the day before I was not going to study furiously, but I could not help myself. And then I did so poorly on my test reviews yesterday because I had such a hard time concentrating that I began to doubt myself. Don't fall into this trap! Plan for ways to relax and stick to it no matter what! I seriously was worried that internal cranial bleeding d/t aneurysm would get the best of me!

#2 Use a variety of sources to study. Some people say to pick a good review and stick with it, but I disagree. Sticking with only strategies to answer questions will not necessarily get you a passing grade! I think the NCLEX people know what products are out there and aren't going to give a bunch of questions that you can use this with. At least my NCLEX questions were not like this. I think using several products helps you learn to analyze your choices a little better. Plus, repeated questions during those exams inaccurately inflate your overall test scores which can be misleading.

#3 When you find an area that you are weak in, don't procrastinate! Stop what you're doing and go back to the books and review it until you completely understand the topic. There are so many aspects of care that you can be tested on that you can't rely on little notes written on specific aspects of patient care to help you really learn it.

So, not sure if this makes much since, but it's helps reduce my anxiety to share it. I think I'll go have a glass of wine, now. I am not on MAO-I's or taking aspirin and I have no known liver problems that I know of...