I promised to God that I would help people by sharing strategies once I passed the NCLEX examination which is why I am taking the effort and time to write this article to those who are about to take the NCLEX. I would like to tell you a bit about myself. I am Filipino, I graduated college 2 years ago in the Philippines. I have been practicing as a Private Duty Nurse here in Qatar. So basically, my knowledge has been stagnant that I forget some things that I know about nursing since I have only one patient I have been taking care of for about 1 year and 8 months now and everything I have been doing everyday is the same. So I decided to take NCLEX of getting a chance someday (God knows when) to work in my dream country which is United States for me to refresh my knowledge about nursing. Here are the things I did to pass the NCLEX:
1.) Study, study and study
My main reference for studying the NCLEX would be Saunders Comprehensive Review for the NCLEX-RN Examination 5th Edition by Silvestri which is available in a bookstore I found here in Qatar and I believe which you can also purchase on bookstores located near you or online. I read the whole thing from the first page until the last one. I must say of all the books I have read, this has helped me the most. In each chapter, you will find PRIORITY NURSING ACTIONS boxes, memorize, highlight them AND TAKE NOTE OF THEM (Believe me, writing it down will make you remember it). These boxes will help you survive NCLEX especially on the drag-and-drop type of question. There is a CD attached at the back of this book which contains a Diagnostic Test on it and makes your own study table. If you will notice the pattern once you have your study table, it recommends that you study your weak areas first followed by the areas which seem easier for you. I suggest you follow the sequence of the topics the CD has made for you. If you are the type of person who already knows the strategies on how to answer questions on NCLEX but lacks knowledge in nursing, I highly recommend this book.
My 2nd reference was Lippincott's Q&A Review for NCLEX RN 11th Edition. I bought this book because I noticed when I was reading threads here, this was one of the books that people recommended. From the title of the book itself, it's basically just Q&A and contains all the types of the questions that may appear on the NCLEX. To be honest, there are some parts of this book that have inconsistencies which makes me confused of what I have just read in Saunders so I stopped reading and just finished the 1st chapter of this book.
My third reference was Kaplan Review on Demand, I also discovered Kaplan through allnurses.com. Kaplan offers 3 types of Review. I chose Review on Demand because I can study at my own pace anytime and anywhere. My biggest weakness was Pharmacology and Kaplan gave me strategies on how can I overcome that weakness. If you have the same weakness as I have and you want to learn strategies on how to answer NCLEX questions, purchase Kaplan Review on Demand (visit Kaplan.com and choose NCLEX for more details). It may cost a lot but it's really worth it. It has a Qbank which contains 3000 questions and the questions are worded similarly with the NLCEX questions. Kaplan suggests that you answer 75 questions per day from Qbank and get atlease 60% from it. DO NOT get discouraged when you get below 60% at your first attempt to answer the Qbank, just keep studying and keep your focus. Maximize your resources from Kaplan, especially the e-book that it will give you and listen very well from Lessons 1-8. Ms. Barbara who is the lecturer from Lessons 1-8 has helped me a lot (virtually) on how to answer NCLEX questions. I made my own study table for this together with Saunders.
After studying Kaplan and Saunders together, I studied Prioritization, Delegation and Assignment by La Charity 3rd Edition. I was only able to answer half of the book, I didn't answer the case studies but this book really helped me a lot in answering prioritization questions. TIP: ALWAYS READ THE RATIONALES AFTER ANSWERING Q&A.
2.) Pray
I did not just pray upon waking up and before bed time but I also prayed at the times I felt hopeless and tired and I always thanked God for giving me perseverance to study hard and that's very important. Studying is not easy especially when you have lots of work to do and you are multi tasking. So whatever religion you have, seek guidance and He will help you get through it.
3.) Have some fun and know when should you take some rest.
I take one day off in a week and on that day, I ensure I spend the whole day with my family with nothing to think about. I study 8 hours or sometimes 12 hours in a day and take an afternoon nap in between around 1 to 2 hours in a day. I can not continuously review because my brain cannot process everything when I review 8 to 12 hours straight.
4.) Eat healthy foods and exercise
I believe foods such as hard boiled eggs, wheat bread and high fiber cereal for breakfast and greek salad (my favorite veggie salad) for lunch helped my brain get nourished throughout my NCLEX RN Review. I also munch on fruits such as grapes, apples and bananas for my morning and afternoon snack and If I get fed up with fruits sometimes, I switch to walnuts. I exercise every evening after reviewing because reviewing makes me feel tired at the end of the day so I exercise to be re-energized. I ensure that I drink 1.5 to 2 liters of lemon and cucumber infused water everyday and I just feel very healthy. TIP: Ensure that you eat the right amount of food so that you won't feel sleepy. I suggest you do small frequent feedings so that you won't feel totally hungry. It's hard to study when you feel bloated and all you want to do is to lie down and sleep.
5.) Surround yourself with positive people
Besides praying, I always talk to my family about how I feel every now and then when reviewing, especially when I am tired and felt like giving up. My family has always been giving me the courage to continue reviewing and reminding me that I have come this far and I should not give up. In addition, I've always been reading articles of people who are very optimistic whether they passed or not and they have somehow changed my perspective :)
Three days before my NCLEX exam, I flew to the Philippines (since there is no pearson vue center offering nclex exam here in Qatar) and spent 1 day with my grandparents in the province. The day after my examination, I traveled by bus to Manila and checked in to a hotel just beside the Pearson Vue Center. After checking in, I spent the whole night watching TV in my hotel room. The next day, few hours just before my examination, I ate breakfast, prayed and did a bit of yoga. Forty minutes before the exam starts, I headed towards the Pearson Vue Center and start the examination. I started at 9:00 AM sharp and ended exactly at 10:30 AM. (TIP: DO NOT OVERANALYZE IN THE EXAMINATION! DO NOT LET THE "WHAT IF?" QUESTION KICK IN YOUR MIND AND REMAIN CALM WITH LITTLE OR NO ANXIETY, TRUST ME, YOU WILL BE ABLE TO ANSWER THE QUESTIONS BETTER.)
After the examination, I went inside a mall located nearby the pearson vue center alone, had a stroll for a few hours, ate and shopped so hard! Lol. I told myself, whether I am going to pass or not, I deserve a treat. Few hours until 3 days after my examination, I have been frequently doing the Pearson Vue Trick and it was as if it is indicating that I didn't pass but I didn't believe it and continued praying. Four days after the examination, I checked my account in Pearson Vue website and to my surprise, I passed! It was one of the greatest and unforgettable moments of my life!
So you see? If I, who is a foreign graduate, reviewed while working and passed the NCLEX RN, how could you not right? Anything is possible, just believe in yourself. I wish the NCLEX PN and RN examiners good luck and I hope I have helped you even a bit on how you can pass the NCLEX RN examination. 
