Memoirs of an MCAT Mental Breakdown

    Oh, the MCAT,  nightmare of every pre-med student. Whether you're studying on your own or taking a course, it's hard. Four hours of unrelenting focus and top speed intelligence power testing you in four years worth of material and more. Its score will define which Medical Schools you will be able to get into or at least apply. For all those of you going through this process right now, let me share my story with you.
    In the Summer between my Junior and Senior year of college, I scheduled to take my MCAT. I studied on my own using books from different companies. I tested which ones worked the best for me, the made an eight week study plan to prepare for it. In the first five weeks, I would be reviewing all the material covered, and in the last three weeks I would practice practice practice. I was not taking classes, working or anything else at the time. All my time was for the MCAT. The plan seemed brilliant at first but I oversaw one minor detail...
    For those first five weeks, all I did was study. Literally. Weekends, days, nights. I predicted a "directly proportional relationship" between the time I studied and the improvement in my practice test scores. Close to the end of the five weeks hit a rut, stuck in a score of 23 ( I was aiming for a 30). Eight hours of studying a day and I couldn't get past the 23. Slowly the frustration and stress crept in my brain. I started losing sleep. I slept uneasily thinking about test questions, formulas, or I would stay awake thinking of what would I do if I never got into medical school. Would I take a year off and re-apply? What would I do in that time? Should I apply to Caribbean schools as well? The more I thought about it the more stressed I became. The day after a sleepless night,  I would be tired but I would forced myself to study anyway--not an effective strategy. Studying while tired only made my frustration ad stress grow as missed questions from material I knew. I began to take sleeping pills to aid my rest.
  Two and a half weeks before the test I was still stuck in a 23, and I was considering cancelling the exam, when my dad called. He asked me how was I feeling for the test. Before I could manage a "fine" I broke down crying. And when I say crying I mean BAWLING my eyes out, sobbing-can't-breathe-I'm-a-fourth-year-old-little-girl crying. After he calmed me down, I told him all I was doing to prepare for the test. He analyzed my plan, then said, " I see.Maybe you should try studying less?" I went ballistic. LESS? Study less? Two  and a half weeks before and I should study less. He explained there was so much information that a brain could take in a day and it needed time to process it all. Tiring it day upon day would not yield results. Finding the prefect balance between relaxing and studying  in optimal conditions would be the best thing to do. Even if it did involve studying less.
  While I did follow that advice, it came in too late. Had I done that from the beginning, I might have had higher than a 24. Nevertheless, I took the test again the following January and with the advice and five weeks of studying, instead of 8, I scored two points higher.
    So when you're studying, PLEASE, remember to relax. Take a day off in the week. Go out with your friends. Its ok to have fun. Be confident in yourself and don't let it get to you. Keep in mind that the MCAT is not taking you, YOU are taking it. Good luck :)