When you are anxious about taking a test, your brain can become overloaded with the chaos the anxiety is generating. It then becomes harder for you to remember what you have learned, and you may even misunderstand test questions and give the wrong answer.

Anxiety also causes changes in your heart beat. The heart is constantly sending signals to the brain to give the brain information on how you are feeling. The messages your heart sends to your brain affect your brain’s ability to function. Anxiety causes your heart to beat in an irregular pattern. When the heart sends an irregular pattern to the brain, it can cause the brain to not work as well. It becomes hard to think clearly. When you feel calm, your heart produces smooth patterns that improve the functioning of your brain.

Biofeedback is a training technique in which information about something that is happening in the body, such as heart rhythm patterns, is displayed on a computer screen to enable you to change behavioral patterns. By being able to see what is happening to your heart rhythms, you can learn to produce a coherent pattern that will help you take a test. The Institute of HeartMath® has created heart rate variability feedback software based on years of research. We combine this software with academic tutoring to prepare you for taking your test. For more information about the Institute of of HeartMath® and its products, go to www.heartmath.org.