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Treatments for Post Bar Exam Syndrome

By William Vogeler, Esq. | Last updated on

There's a common syndrome that sets in after you take the bar exam and before you get results.

It starts with a question that you can't answer, and that's the problem. Did you pass?

Here's the good news: you can actually do something about the Post Bar Exam Syndrome. Let's forget about the bad news; that's something you don't have to worry about for now.

Take a Vacation

First, a disclaimer: the "Post Bar Exam Syndrome" is just a made-up-here thing. If it were a real doctor-invented thing, there would be a pill for it.

But everybody who has taken the bar exam knows that anxiety and wondering about bar results can make you sick. That's why you need a vacation.

Take a real break from the months or years of hardcore study. It may cost more than a bottle of Xanax, but it's what you really need.

Stop Obsessing

That's because the main symptom of Post Bar Exam Syndrome is obsessing about the test. The J.D. doctor says: take a chill pill.

Meagan Jabbori, a JD Advising bar exam tutor, says there is no point obsessing about something you can't control. Don't think about the test, and don't talk about it.

"If you have friends, classmates, or family members that talk about the exam, kindly tell them that you don't want to talk about the test anymore," she wrote.

Catch Up With Life

After all, there is way more to life than a bar exam. Life itself is a test, right?

If you deal with it well, Post Bar Exam Syndrome can actually help you with life. Take the time before your results to catch up with life, reconnect with family and friends and other meaningful experiences.

If you can't help yourself -- and you start thinking about the possibility that you failed -- then recognize it could have been worse. In California last time, for example, test takers turned in the worst results in almost 70 years.

You know you will do better than that -- even if you took that test, too.

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