bobjones
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Post by bobjones on Aug 2, 2012 11:30:56 GMT
I'm a 34 year old MSc student. Long term depression issues and was diagnosed with ADHD last week!!! Started on Concerta XL 27mg. I started my MSc in September and it hasn't gone well, missed exams and coursework. I'm due to be sitting the missed exams (8 in 8 days!) starting in 2 weeks. Can anyone recommend any ADHD focused strategies or tools I could use to help me revise and be able to sit my exams ! (Apart from praying )
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Post by goosey on Aug 2, 2012 14:21:30 GMT
Hi bob jones, My recommendations are - 1. Break down study times to 20-30 mins, set a stopwatch or alarm to help manage your time. 2. Give yourself plenty of 'breathers' in between, take 15 mins and make a drink etc, avoid the Internet and allow your brain to rest ! 3. Use colour and spider diagrams / mind maps to help link information, I took photos using my phone so I could look at them anytime. They are more stimulating and easier to focus thoughts. 4. Try to use as many senses as possible to help your revision. I simulated a house for the main topic and used each room as a sub-topic. I'd visualise things in the room related to the sub-topic and visualised walking around the house, going in to each room. This is quite hard work but really helped me deal with pathophysiology. 5. Log out of any Internet connections and find somewhere quiet to study so distractions are minimal (I used headphones to block out extra noise). 6. Have treats in the house so you can 'reward' yourself afterwards. Simple but works. 7. Lastly look though your course work for any pointers on exam topics or questions or any places you can gain easy marks. You'll be surprised where easy marks can be made ! I submitted a few 'extenuating circumstances' forms prior to some exams as they allow you another opportunity to re-take if necessary -i.e 3 attempts instead of 2. Worth thinking about if 8 exams in 8 days is too much work / stress. Good luck, these strategies worked for me, I've just graduated after 3 long hard years of studying
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 3, 2012 11:41:48 GMT
Goosey said: I submitted a few 'extenuating circumstances' forms prior to some exams as they allow you another opportunity to re-take if necessary -i.e 3 attempts instead of 2. Worth thinking about if 8 exams in 8 days is too much work / stress. As someone who teaches in higher education (undergraduate and postgraduate level) and is trying to do a PhD, I'd suggest doing more than thinking about extenuating circumstances. 8 exams in 8 days would be difficult for most people even jf they're basically already prepared. It's just too stressful. If you're not already essentially prepared, I don't think 2 weeks is realistically enough to prepare for that many exams--maybe for 3 or 4, depending on how much reviewing is required and what that entails for you (memory problems meant exams required a huge amount of preparation for me even if I'd kept up with everything during the term). Your university will have a group/department responsible for assisting students with disabilities. Find it pronto. Explain the situation to the them. I suspect they'll likely concur with me that 8 exams in 8 days is unrealistic and it's likely you're in this situation because of your previously undiagnosed ADHD. Options to explore with them: intermitting from the university for a period of time while you adapt to your medication, adjust the dosage, and get some help with planning and organisation. That would be my preferred choice as it has several benefits. You're not stressed by trying to adjust the medication and cope with side effects while studying/doing exams and you can use that time to review the material in preparation for the exams. If your consultant is willing, having a letter from them explicitly acknowledging your ADHD as a contributing factor to your academic performance and they'll be trying to remedy that by doing bleah over the next x months will be helpful when applying to intermit and make it more likely to be granted. Having the consultant comment about the likelihood of success or fairness of making up 8 exams in 8 days won't hurt either, if possible. Another option: space the exams out with no more than 2 a week and at least a week between exam weeks to prepare -- or something similar. That's more manageable (and sounds less overwhelming) but still gets things done in a reasonable amount of time. Again, a letter from your consultant to support that course of action and why you're where you're at probably won't hurt. What "extenuating circumstances" applications do depends on the university. At the Open University, they're taken into consideration by the exam award board when determining your final grade. It usually means they're more willing to give you the benefit of the doubt if you're close to passing. It doesn't allow you to retake exams (although there is a mechanism for that automatically granted to all qualifying students on modules where it's possible) and you basically need to have done most of the work and passed it anyway. Why? Because allowing you to pass means the OU is publicly saying you know and understand the material. The student support group that deals with students with disabilities will know about extenuating circumstances and/or you can consult the relevant handbook or regulation guidelines for your university and degree program. Anyway, find this student support group immediately--Monday, if possible. You need to discuss your options and get things sorted before you start taking and failing exams, I think. It's always easier to fix these sorts of things before they happen and less stressful and demoralising too. Good luck and please keep us informed as to how it's going and what happened.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 3, 2012 12:54:24 GMT
This is really helpful advice, eingang!
Pd - one to 'sticky' for other studes with similar probs in the future?
Or Atticus - do you think it's the sort of thing that could do with being extracted and turned into general support material on the AADD site...
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bobjones
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Post by bobjones on Aug 3, 2012 14:30:45 GMT
Thank you all for your responses. I am up to my eyeballs in extenuating circumstances. I'm between a rock and a hard place. The best option would be to repeat the year but thats not something I can afford to do! My finish date has already been extended until December. There is only so far the Uni will go! I have submitted extenuating circumstances for both terms and exam times. My marks are ok, only one less than 65%, for what i've actually handed in. I missed all the January exam and one in June, also a lot of lectures + coursework. I have been seeing a Mental Health Mentor (due to long term depression) for most of the year and a councillor for a couple of months. Ironically, now I need them, access has been difficult due to term ending, training days, annual leave and me being rubbish! All this compounded by financial problems and legal issues around access to my son. Ahhhhhhhhhh Everything has all come at once! Does anyone know this Saturday's lottery numbers ??
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bobjones
Member posts quite a bit
Posts: 103
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Post by bobjones on Aug 15, 2012 10:08:08 GMT
think I'm done. How I though I could handle 8 exams in 10 days, I don't know? I've been sitting in the library for two and a half without being able to focus on anything, the banging, sawing and drilling don't help (renovation work). I've been able to do a minuscule about of revision for courses I've missed half of anyway. While my usual ADHD symptoms (racing thoughts, poor focus) have diminished slightly, the side effects from both my ADHD and antidepressant meds have kicked in lovely (headache, nausea and, my favourite, a metallic taste on my tongue). There is no realistic possibility of achieving an adequate mark in the resift exams, and nowhere near enough for me to even consider continuing to December. Realistically it's going to take a while to find the right combination of meds at the right dose. I don't know what I'm going to do now but I think I'll start with a coffee and a cake
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jansson
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Post by jansson on Aug 16, 2012 8:52:27 GMT
Really sorry to hear that things aren't going so well for you. I think many (all?) of us know what it's like to be so stressed and overwhelmed that we can't take the next step. However, you are entitled to get support from your Uni. It's in their interest to see you succeed, and there are a number of options that can be explored to help you do so. I was going to suggest some of them, but eingang has already written a very comprehensive post outlining the steps to take. The first thing to do, as eingang suggested, is to find out where the disability support unit is in your Uni, get yourself there, and explain your situation. They should be able to work with you to find the best outcome. So in fact, you only need to do ONE thing: get to the disability support people and let them help you. You can do this: the fact that you've taken positive steps to get diagnosis and get treatment (even if that takes time to get right) is proof!
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Post by Wavey75 on Jan 2, 2014 19:29:34 GMT
I'm in my 7th (and final) part time year studying towards my BSc with the open university and I have ADHD (diagnosed 3 weeks ago), APD, visual problems, various physical difficulties and things have not gone well for me at all during exams.
I asked my GP for something to help calm me down, so I could concentrate and he prescribed me Propranolol 10mg, which really did help me focus on the 3 hour exams and I surprised myself.
The advice already given is great, but I thought this might help too.
Wavey75
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Feb 20, 2014 11:26:06 GMT
Nice thread. Here's what those at ADDitude mag are saying - click hereExcerpt: " Eighty-four percent of students study by rereading the textbook, as John did. The problem is that rereading is the most ineffective way of studying for an exam. Reading is a challenging way for the ADHD brain to learn information. Reading is passive. It’s like learning to play basketball by watching your coach play. "
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Post by DKL - darkknightslover on Feb 21, 2014 8:46:16 GMT
Get a body-double. Someone who will just be a presence next to you to help you concentrate. They can be anyone and can be getting on with their own work. My uni study support tutor also sets me goals of stuff to get done before the next session. The extra accountability means I panic for her.deadlines.instead of the real ones, but she supports me with anything I need to discuss out loud if I've not been able to manage it.
Get an adhd coach if you can.
Sent from my C6603 using proboards
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Post by like-flowers on Apr 15, 2019 21:53:59 GMT
HI. I was just diagnosed last year (42) and have just completed my Bsc Physiotherapy exams. 3 broad range exams in one week. 2 weeks to prep. It nearly fried me. As far as strategies? I made a lot of plans - which helped me to really understand what I was expected to deliver in the exams, and made sure I knew all my topics. A list of topics helped me stay on course and not get lost in a particular strand. A time limit for each study session (I can do about 20min max effectively) If you have time, I found it was better for me to write out in narrative form what i DID know on a topic, than try to re-read what was taught. It showed me where the gaps were.. BUT I made notes of the gaps and looked them up later, not let myself get blown off course while writing out what I knew. Ultimately I passed, but it took its toll and I ended up pushing through a panic attack to get the last one done (haha - not that you will... just I passed anyway, even under those circumstances!) Now I've got 2 weeks of scheduled self-care, letting my mind unravel and on minimum responsibility to recover from the effort - I think that's important. One thing that has really helped me in the past with exams is to take a baby's dummy/pacifier into the exam and chew on that while I am in the room. The biggest thing I did was to lower my expectations of myself. I got 2:1 passes, which annoys me because I feel I am capable based on my knowledge and skills of getting higher, but realistically the ADHD is an inhibitor for exam revision and performance for me so I am just trying to accept that. GOOD LUCK!
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alina81
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Post by alina81 on Apr 3, 2022 1:11:40 GMT
I'm a 34 year old MSc student. Long term depression issues and was diagnosed with ADHD last week!!! Started on Concerta XL 27mg. I started my MSc in September and it hasn't gone well, missed exams and coursework. I'm due to be sitting the missed exams (8 in 8 days!) starting in 2 weeks. Can anyone recommend any ADHD focused strategies or tools I could use to help me revise and be able to sit my exams ! (Apart from praying ) Hi, you should try meditation and controlled breathing, also caffeine and sugary drinks, it might help with focus. For motivation reach for family and friends support
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