Concentrating during exam week
You know you have to study, but your brain just won’t cooperate? Exam week is coming up, your summaries are ready, but your gaze wanders to your phone, the bird outside or the wall opposite your desk. For many students, exam week is a real test, not only of knowledge, but especially of concentration. The amount of stimuli surrounding a teenager is enormous. Music, notifications, household noises, thoughts about friends, sports, social pressure… everything is fighting for attention. And if your brain can’t properly filter what’s important and what can wait, learning becomes almost impossible. It feels like there’s a traffic jam in your head and nothing is moving.
Some young people describe it as a kind of inner chaos: ‘I start with history, but then I think about maths. And then about my phone. And then about that text message I haven’t replied to yet.’ Their brains switch from topic to topic without finding peace. For parents and teachers, this can seem frustrating: ‘Just get started!’ But for the child, it feels like surviving a storm of stimuli.
So what helps? Structure, breaks and exercise are important, but sometimes something extra is needed to make the body feel safe.
Because only when the body experiences rest can the brain focus. That’s where the Squease pressure vest comes in. The vest provides deep, even pressure around the upper body, as if you were getting a big hug. This pressure activates the parasympathetic nervous system, the part that promotes relaxation and concentration.
Students who wear it while studying or just before a test often notice that their breathing becomes calmer, their thoughts are less scattered and their body is no longer stuck in “on mode”. It is as if the traffic jam has cleared, slowly making room for clear thinking again. So, if your child’s mind is anywhere but on their homework during exam week, don’t just ask, “Have you studied yet?”, but also, “Does your body feel calm enough to study?”. Perhaps that is the key to true concentration.