• Replies 6 replies
  • Subscribers 28 subscribers
  • Views 232 views
  • Users 0 members are here
Options
Related
Hints and tips
  • To quote someone's message, first select/highlight the relevant text, and then use the Quote button that appears
  • To "mention" someone, type @ followed by the start of the forum name, and choose from the list; that person will get a notification of being mentioned

Exam Anxiety

Aspeth

I'm not sure if this is the right forum to post this, but my issue seems to fit the topic of 'Health and lifestyle' than 'Mental health and wellbeing' or any other forum... That is just how I'm thinking so I apologise if I'm wrong and this post belongs elsewhere...

Anyway, I'm on my second last day of exams and all the anxiety and stress had caught up to me after my Art exam while I was studying for tomorrows exam and ended up getting nauseous, not ill, just like I was about to throw up. I had to go to the bathroom but nothing came up so I had to (not literally but the feeling of needing to vomit was so overwhelming that I decided it was the best/quickest option) force my gag reflex to activate by sticking my fingers down my throat... It took 4 tries before the juice I drank that morning came up and even though I knew there was more food/drink in me, the need to vomit dissipated after I puked up that small amount...

Is this normal?

No, I don't have anorexia, bulimia, or any other eating disorders. I just felt the need to throw up because of the stacked up anxiety. My question is more-so 'is it normal for built up anxiety to suddenly hit and cause nausea, refusing to dissipate until I give in and vomit, even if it is only about 45mL that comes up?'

  • in reply to Martin

    Cool. I love learning about anatomy (human and animal! star-struck

  • in reply to Aspeth

    The second most densely innervated organ of the body, after the brain, is the alimentary tract. The vagus nerve (10th cranial nerve) connects the guts and the brain.

  • in reply to Martin

    That's really helpful, and fascinating Relaxed️

  • in reply to Bunny
    Bunny said:
    I feel that you would be best advised to ask your GP about this. (For good reasons, we're not allowed to offer medical advice to each other, here).

    Yeah, I understand that... my intended question was if it was just me or if others experienced the same thing. I do intend to talk to my GP about it but I also wanted to know if others had the same (or similar) experience.

    thank you so much for the links. I'll look at them when I get time.

    God Bless Blush

  • I know that my daughter's anxiety, she is autistic, as am I, often expressed itself as nausea and sometimes vomiting. The brain to alimentary tract nervous connection is very strong.

    Speaking personally, I always found exams hugely anxiety inducing. To such an extent that it tended to interfere with my ability to revise effectively. What often happened was that I would eventually decide that I was destined to fail. After reaching this point, the anxiety tended to become somewhat lessened. It would spike again when I went into whatever hall, crowded with other anxious people, that the exam was taking place in.

  • Aspeth said:
    My question is more-so 'is it normal for built up anxiety to suddenly hit and cause nausea, refusing to dissipate until I give in and vomit, even if it is only about 45mL that comes up?'

    I feel that you would be best advised to ask your GP about this. (For good reasons, we're not allowed to offer medical advice to each other, here).

    There's some more general advice about anxiety in the context of autism here, which you might find helpful:

    NAS - Anxiety

    Although it's intended for parents and teachers of school-age children, there's also some advice about exams here:

    NAS - Exams

    I hope that your remaining exams go well Fingers crossed