Alishba on finding focus and overcoming exam anxiety

“When it came to my revision for A Levels, I always looked for an excuse to avoid it, like I’d start cleaning up. But I knew at the back of my mind I needed to get some work done. It made me very anxious, and I’d just try to hide it.

The Discover team gave us different ways to overcome procrastination – how you should make a realistic list of what you want to do throughout the day and take time for yourself not just stuff that you need to get done. Just get started, even if it’s a little bit.

The one-to-one sessions were really helpful. Livvy, the person that I had, was so nice and so respectful. I really liked talking to her. She was always very understanding.

The relaxation techniques that they gave us – like mindfulness and breathing in and breathing out – that was really beneficial especially when I’m stressed. In general, when I’m upset or when I’m anxious, it’s my go-to technique.

I’m also extremely close to my faith and it brings me a lot of peace and comfort. I take photos of beautiful mosques.

People my age are definitely stressed by exams but also there could be stuff going on at home. Relationship problems are probably the biggest stress, and friendships as well. You want to find someone who you can confide in. But at times things may not go as well. Discover also deals with those things. They talk about real-life situations and that’s really helpful if you don’t get the support at home.

I think some people would prefer the Discover team to the school counsellors who make records of this stuff and there will be times when they might take you out of class if they think that something is not right. Then people might start speculating on what’s going on which might make a person more anxious. Maybe it’s easier to get help from people outside, since you might not see them as often.

The Discover team came back and did check- ups to see how we are doing. It was really nice to think that people cared.”