A Word of NCLEX Encouragement!!!!!

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Specializes in Transplant.

Hey guys,

I just wanted to write about my cathartic experience that sent me on the biggest roller coaster ride of emotions I have ever been on. Hopefully this brief story will help to alleviate any anxiety you may have if you are about to take the exam or have already taken it and feel like you are going to puke :)

I was a pretty good student at Rutgers University. I was the President of our Student Nurses Association and graduated with general honors and as a member of Sigma Theta Tau, the International Honor Society of Nursing... but none of that meant a thing when it was time to take the NCLEX!!! I prepared for weeks and weeks by going through my $35 Kaplan review book (I did not take the course, but I did watch a few of the content review videos online with my friend who had paid for the course, and I practiced taking the Question Trainers 1-5 and 7). I also took a HESI review course which I thought sucked.

A few days before the exam, in early July 2013, my grandma had a stroke. She is on the road to recovery, but at the time she was in a comatose state. Needless to say, I was beyond distracted and could do nothing but pray and do practice questions and content review on the areas I knew I was weaker in- infection control and health promotion.

I have never had a stronger connection with God and all of his angels than I did in the time before, during and after the NCLEX. Without His guidance and the saints looking out for me and giving me the clarity and calmness I needed, I would not be a nurse today.

I passed the NCLEX after sitting in the room in Princeton, NJ for 5 hours and taking all 265 questions. I thought I was going to die. I was the last person in the room by over an hour and a half, but as my grandpa pointed out, that could have been because other people failed and the computer shut off sooner because it decided they were not safe enough to pass (that is not to say that you should worry about failing if your computer turns off sooner, obviously). During the test I frequently stretched in my seat, took deep breaths, took pee breaks and PRAYED. You will have time to take the test, so do not rush through it or worry about running out of time. Your entire college career has led to this moment, so don't blow it because of nerves and a lack of confidence. Go into this thing with an attitude that you are going into war and you are NOT going to be intimidated or go down without a fight. We are God's soldiers and do His work, and this is the final test to prove to ourselves and to the powers that be that we are worthy of sustaining and improving human lives.

IF YOU GRADUATED NURSING SCHOOL, YOU HAVE THE KNOWLEDGE BASE TO PASS THE NCLEX. Please remember that when you get flustered leading up to and on test day.

Now, after I took the exam I had the worst day of my life. At first, I drove home and stared at my computer, afraid to try the Pearson Vue Trick (PVT) because I was afraid that it would go to the credit card screen and my fears of failing would be confirmed. I finally said "f it" and went through the site to try to register for the exam again. I got the good pop-up :) I literally broke down and cried. You want a humbling experience? Take the NCLEX and PASS!!!! Even with the good pop-up I thought "well, what if I'm the only one the trick does not work for? What if they are reviewing my results still and it won't work later? What if, what if, what if...?" DON'T DO THAT. I PROMISE YOU THAT IF YOU GET THE GOOD POP-UP YOU WILL PASS. And I KNOW you will NOT believe me if your nerves are as bad as mine were, but once you find out you passed and the trick was correct, you will come on here and tell everyone the exact same thing. The PVT DOES WORK 100% OF THE TIME. It will say "Our records indicate that you have recently scheduled this exam. Please contact your Member Board for further assistance. Another registration cannot be made at this time." You can click OK. So, on with my story...

I drove to the mall to meet up with my mom and sister (family is key) and they helped me to stay somewhat distracted from the feelings of having to projectile vomit across the stores. That night I went to Philly to visit my Grandma and my parents took me to a bar called Moriarty's to get a buzz going so that I would not worry about it so much. Needless to say, it helped a little bit but I was hardly a fun person to be around that night. The morning after, I went on the Pennsylvania Board of Nursing's website at 8am and kept clicking refresh on the license validation page to see if my license would be posted. The PA Board of Nursing is on their game and post new licenses without 48 hours according to the Board employee I called up that morning shortly before getting the good news. I was clicking refresh over and over but had to check my email.. in that 30 seconds my mom (also an RN) ran into my room balling her eyes out and shaking and handed me her phone. MY NAME WAS ON IT WITH RN AFTER IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That was just two short weeks ago but it feels like an eternity ago. It was the best moment of my life, and their have been a ton lately with graduating from Rutgers and starting my job right out of school as a transplant unit nurse at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.

Moral of the story: have faith in yourself and pray to whatever deity you worship. God and His amazing team were in my corner for this exam; I know that I would not have passed without them. You have the tools to succeed. Use them and keep a clear and focused mind and you will do fine. Good luck.

If you already took the exam and got the good pop-up (which works immediately after you take the exam; I know people that went right out to their car to do it), CONGRATULATIONS RN!!! CELEBRATE!!!!!

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AMEN! I finished my lpn program yesterday! Took the ati comp exam & passed with a 96% probability of passing nclex the 1st time. Ive studied off & on the past few months but now im really getting on it! Imma have anxiety & a tight chest like i didnt taking ati until i take boards & pass! Im praying that God's will be done! He brought me thru nursing school with my little mustard seed faith & im trusting he'll do it again! Then on 2 RN school! Thanks for the encouragement & best wishes in your nursing career!

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Specializes in ED.

Haha when I took my test last Monday in downtown Chicago I left the testing center after 2 hours and 40 mins and 108 questions later I was sure as heck I failed the test. On the train going home I did the PVT and got the good pop up, but I still had my doubts! I guess when we really are in that situation where anxiety is high, some trick will just not suffice.

24 hours later I went online to check Continental testing services to check my application and it said there PASS, still I had my doubts! I know I'm crazy

48 hours later I paid $8 to Pearson Vue which I kind of felt stupid doing it.

Congratulations on passing and getting a new job right away! Im working as a PCT in a Telemetry dept and when I told my manager I just passed NCLEX she said they just hired 5 new grads and that made me really sad. But oh well. Congrats again!

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Congrats RN!!! Thank you for your inspiring post. I'm going to take mine next week for the second time and I'm really getting anxious. I'm so emotional also because my mom and sister don't support me. They are so discouraging! I hope that I will pass too just like you even I'm going through a rough time. Praying so hard!

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congrats!

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Congratz to you :))) , God is good :)

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Congrats! Your post is inspiring! What is the PVT trick? Why would some peoples computers turn off and not let them do all the questiosn?

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congrats amazing story...hope your grandma is doing better. I am worried about the nclex...taking it Monday but I have to do it.....hoping all goes well. I just need to keep sane and anxiety-free.

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Congrats! Your post is inspiring! What is the PVT trick? Why would some peoples computers turn off and not let them do all the questiosn?

It's important to understand the way this type of computerized exam works to know the answer to this question.

Imagine a line across a paper, designating a passing score. Maybe it will help to draw one. (Do not do this while you are actually taking your test-- this is just to show you how it works!!) (Gad, did I really need to say that? Yeah, probably. :) )

This line exists in the computer and demonstrates the way the computer decides whether you pass.

Put a dot at the beginning of that baseline. If you get the first question right, the next dot is a little bit above the line. If you get the second question right, the next dot is a little higher than that. Connect these dots, and keep drawing-- for every right answer, go up a bit. For every wrong answer, go down the same amount.

If you get a right answer, the next question may be a little harder. If you get a wrong answer, the next question may be a little easier.

(Also, a certain percentage of the questions you get will not count, as they are being trialled for inclusion in the test bank for later. Despite what you read here, you don't know how many there are of those, what percentage of them there are, or even if you will get to see any of them. Just know that if you see something and say to yourself, "That's a really bad question!" just answer it the best you can and move on. If enough people get it wrong, or a lot of people get the same wrong answer, the test prep folks will decide about using it again or modifying it, but it won't count for or against you either way.)

Over time, you draw a zig-zag line that either trends above the baseline, or below it. At some point, different for everyone, your zig-zag line is either high enough that there's no chance it can dip down to below failing, or low enough that there's no chance that it will get above passing, and you're done. This could occur at 75 questions or 265 questions (whatever the max is), whenever the computer has enough data it needs to make the decision.

The "Pearson Vue trick" allegedly lets exceptionally nervous people know right away whether they passed or not by letting them enter a credit card number (to retake because they failed) or not. There are a few other things, but from what I read here, it fails often enough to make for a lot of angst. If you are able to wait for your birthday and don't open your presents on Christmas eve, you can wait a few days (OMG!!) until your license number is posted on the Board of Nursing website, and you will have the definitive, authoritative, accurate answer.

Note that something like more than 90% of NCLEX-takers pass, and your school may be higher-- you can look that up online easily at your state Board of Nursing website. Chillax.

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Thank you for the write up. It was uplifting.

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Thank you for this post! I took my NCLEX-PN on 7/26/2013. After 1 hour and 4 minutes, the test shut off after 85 questions. Nurses had warned me to be prepared for uncertainty. I didn't understand their warnings until the drive home. I just kept thinking I either passed or bombed it completely... which, I simply didn't know... too many Select All That Apply questions! So, as soon as I arrived home I pulled out my laptop and tried the PVT. I got the good pop-up but it did little to calm my fears. Since I tested on a Friday morning, I knew I would have to wait thru the weekend, at least. Longest weekend of my life! Monday came and went, so did Tuesday. I must have checked the OBN verification page 1000 times. Finally on Wednesday Pearson Vue gave me the Quick Results link and I, too, foolishly paid the $8 for the unofficial result. Yes, I had unofficially passed. Mid-morning on Thursday, OBN had updated my record and made it official. I WEPT! :drowning: Seriously, I must have cried for a full hour! I felt ridiculous. I called my husband at work to give him the good news. He just kept asking me WHY I was crying and I had no answer. It is an emotional roller coaster, even without family trauma. Best wishes to your grandmother and congrats on your victory over NCLEX!

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You're so welcome (if that was aimed at me). :)

The pass rate for NCLEX nationally is over 90%, and your school may be higher. If the faculty passed you, they think you're ready. You can do this!

:flwrhrts:

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