I was full of nerves before my exam. I tried to stay calm, and treated myself to a full body massage and frozen yogurt the day before. I asked close friends and family to keep me in their thoughts and prayers. Nevertheless, I couldn’t get rid of the feeling that somebody had opened a can of jumping beans inside my body.
There was a huge thunderstorm the night before, and between booms and strange dreams, I barely slept. I had never been awake for so many hours before such an important exam. My husband comforted me during the night saying, “Don’t worry, I’m sure nobody sleeps well before this exam.”
I awoke feeling mildly ill, and I actually wondered, “Could I be sick?” I didn’t feel like eating, but forced myself to have breakfast. I drove myself to the testing center ahead of schedule, all the way feeling like I ought to be in a better mindset before the exam.
Then, I got there. I found a woman with a large text wandering outside the building. She looked just as anxious as I felt, so I approached her and helped her find the testing center. The staff let us get started right away. I was the only one there all day taking the Step 1 exam, so they checked me in first. After getting photographed, fingerprinted and documented, I got my seat in a cubicle #2 with laminated paper and a huge set of noise-canceling headphones.
I began the test, and things got better. I’m not sure if I imagined it, but I felt like the first hour was the easiest, as if they were trying to soothe me into test-taking mode. How nice of them! Also, there were only 46 questions per hour. I was expecting 48.
When I took my lunch break, I saw the same woman I had met in the morning who had just finished. She had received her results immediately, and confided in me that she had barely passed. I told her congratulations, and not to worry because nobody would ever know the difference (simultaneously I realized it was important for me to remember these words as well).
8 hours flew by, and before I knew it, I was toasting with my husband and a glass of nice wine. My study calendar is in the recycling bin, and I have cleaned up my piles of books. At this point, I still can hardly believe it’s over!
Yeah!! Congratulations! I am amazed anyone can take an exam for that long (though I realize lots of people do.) I hope your summer is absolutely WONDERFUL!
Unfortunately not. I have to wait eternity… ehem, I mean 6-8 weeks! I’ll post when I hear.
Congrats on finishing Step 1!!! That’s such a huge accomplishment. I have Step 2 CK in a week, and I’m a ball of nerves right now! Kinda jealous of ya’!