From unusual demands to fear of being ditched by girlfriend, examination woes endless

INDORE: As board examinations begin, psychologists are facing a volley of questions. From fear of being ditched by one's girl friend to fear of parents abandoning them, students are a worried lot.
Mobiles, gadgets, videogames, physical inactivity, fast food diet all lead and add to already existing exam strains. A city-based consulting psychologist Geetendra Chabra said that thoughts of students are clouded with a number of questions amid exam anxiety.Elaborating on the kind of troubles the students face during exam and how the concerns have changed over the years, she said, "Earlier, it mostly used to be the parental pressure, and insecurities that used to lead to depression or other such psychological conditions. Also, it was easier to keep a tab on these causes as they were limited. But, now the list has become endless. Almost anything may be a cause of stress."
Those who are appearing for their board exams this year are not just dealing with stereotypical exam anxieties, but also have to cope with other kinds of stress. Some students are glued to their cell phones so as to attend each and every call that might come to them from their friends. "I feel scared to stay away from my phone for long, as if I would miss some important information that my friends might share about the exam."
According to Chabra, competition is only good as long as it's healthy, in its literal sense. "The moment one's health starts getting affected because of the competition; it is time for students and their family to take it easy. Health should be everyone's top priority and families of students should keep looking for signs that suggest that there is trouble on health front," she said.
Another psychologist Sachin Bhatnagar shared some experiences he had while counselling some students. "Concerns of some parents can really be ludicrous. It is natural for students to get stressed, but in many cases even parents act immature. They start to act more competitive and impatient and unknowingly become responsible for psychological ailments of their children," he said.
Both students and parents show signs of over anxiety that, counsellors and psychiatrists say, has increased over last few years. Interestingly, many students have also begun blackmailing their anxious parents to fulfill their demands ahead of exams. "I have had clients coming to me and complaining about their wards making irrational demands. In some cases, students would take advantage of the situation and demand things they would be refused by their parents on a normal day. Some ask for really expensive gadgets, or other such commodities. It really surprises how anxiety levels have gone up in our society," said Bhatnagar.