Congratulations, the exams are over! Unfortunately for some, the stress doesn’t automatically disappear once you hand in your exam — you want to know how you did, what you got right, what you got wrong. How can you be calm until you get your results? Here are some ideas.

Exhale!

Take a deep breath in, and let it out. You’ve survived the test, and it probably wasn’t even that bad. Be sure to acknowledge that you did it, it’s over, and now you have the freedom to concentrate on other things. Whew!

Reward yourself

After all, you deserve it! Go get an ice cream cone, buy the CD you’ve been saving up for, or take a break and watch a movie. You’ve been working hard, so treat yourself.

Hang out

Unless you were studying together, chances are you didn’t get to really hang out with your friends much prior to the test. Now you can destress with your buddies and get back to normal. Have fun!

Put your notes away

Resist the urge to obsess over your notes when the test is over. While it’s definitely okay to check your answers, try not to relive the test in your mind. That might just add unnecessary stress to waiting for the results. Look over your notes or a textbook quickly to see if you got that borderline question correct, and then store those notes until you get the test back.

Believe in yourself

Always think positive — after all, you won’t know otherwise until your teacher hands back the test. So sit back and keep telling yourself that you worked hard, you know the material, and you were well prepared. With that combination, the results should be just fine. And what to do if you know you did your best to prepare, but the grade doesn’t reflect your hard work? Think of that test as a way to see what you need more help with rather than a judgment on how smart you are. Maybe you need to look at the way you’re studying, or ask for help in certain areas. Keep everything in perspective, one bad grade is not the end of the world. — Agencies