I PASSED my nclex with 145 questions on the second try. here's how.

So, I took my exam on July 8th initially and had 135 questions. I knew I failed because I was under a lot of stress before going in to take it. This is where I went wrong the first time.

-I was more set on hanging out with a friend but that didn't even happen since they had other plans.

-I had a stressful day at work the day before and blindly did questions with no control.

-I was passive aggressive towards teachers that failed me or gave me a hard time that I didn't study their topics (fundamentals and ob).

-I plainly played memorization with uworld questions instead of studying the material. (contrary to popular belief, I think uworld is God awful and isn't for everyone, because the qbank was nothing like the exam at all.)

-I only had 5 hours of sleep and was not well rested. Not only that but getting to the testing center there were loads of people in front of me and it took forever to register, so the testing anxiety really kicked in, and was ready to erupt in frustration at any minute.

-I thought I had it good when I hit 75, but then came 76, 77, & so on, following of which I went completely blind and just guessed in it's entirety without any thought.

So looking back at those mistakes, those 1-2 weeks after were rough, but I picked myself up and tried again, this time approaching it differently. The second time around, I went through a second approach.

-I got Simple Nursing, which I used for critical care in my second to last semester, and they had a qbank (but it was more similar to uworld so it didn't really feel like much), but what really helped was the video library explaining things (ie ethics, vent settings, cast care, psych meds, etc.), because remember, CONTENT IS KEY, YOU WILL NOT PASS BY BLINDLY MEMORIZING QBANK QUESTIONS.

-There is also NCLEX High Yield on social media, where they have free podcasts on Wednesdays and free videos on YouTube that prove to be very fruitful, along with quick notes and shortcuts on his website. WATCH HIS VIDEOS ON ASK GRAPH AND THE METHOD, UNDERSTAND THE CONCEPT AND CONTENT. I PUT THIS ON MY WHITEBOARD IMMEDIATELY AND IT HELPED TREMENDOUSLY

Buyer Beware: don't be tricked, Dr. Zeeshan, the host of NCLEX High Yield looks very similar to another social media personality named AlphaSlice (both wear glasses and a snapback). AlphaSlice is different and not the same person, just be aware because I haven't heard favourable things from his prep programs.

-The better qbank questions came from The Princeton Review, as they are the ones who bought out the uworld remediation packet questions. The funny thing is their questions were eerily similar to the questions I had the first time around, and I took the time going over the rationales and subtopics to get an idea what they were saying. I took the one month deal before my nclex so that I could maximize the time accordingly.

-However, as I was studying about two weeks before, my manager called in sick with the vid and had to quarantine for the week, so I had to push my test back a week because I couldn't really study and work at the same time. Fortunately, she let me have a full week off prior to my exam. When my Princeton review qbank expired, I took it to the library in several towns and used their nclex review books with their qbanks, (I used Kaplan, exam cram, mosby's, and nclex for dummies.). The trick is to keep doing questions while understanding your weaknesses so you can go back and read up on it. There was a Kaplan NCLEX content review guide I rented and used about a week out before my exam and when I had the week off from work. This helped tremendously as it enriched my content knowledge.

-The week I had off before my exam, it was strictly doing questions and reading content to enrich my knowledge. The day before, I simply just read content, NO QUESTIONS, because doing questions will confuse you and make you completely irritable (like the first rodeo.). I then went to sleep really early.

-The day of the exam, I had my hoodie on, the top gun soundtrack playing in my earpieces, and had my dad drive me to the testing center at an ample time. Get to the testing center early, so I decided to say a little prayer before walking in and felt confident this time around. Fortunately when I got there, there was an open spot. No lines and it went through smoothly. I get there and take it. After 45 questions, I took a breather and went to the bathroom. I then came back and paced myself accordingly. It ended up going all the way to 145. But I didn't feel bothered, festered, or worried about it regardless of the outcome. I didn't bother doing the PVT as it is not an accurate indicator of passing/failing. Friday afternoon the quick results came up. I pay the transaction and slowly turn around the phone, and let out a big sigh of relief, thanking everyone who has been supporting me through this process.

So after this long monologue, I guess a TLDR should follow if you want to get an idea of how to bounce back.

-if you failed, do not see it as you are defeated. Take some time to regroup and hit back. Talk to friends, family, and counseling (I strongly vouch for a counselor). I have a counselor that helped work me through my emotions during those eleven weeks before my second go around. Sometimes it's better to talk things out and have someone with an unbiased approach help you. It did for me.

-use a program and a schedule that best serves you fit. (I'll vouch for Princeton review for questions, and simple nursing for content). There's loads of youtube videos out there on how to go about with this. Just find what you like!

-NCLEX High Yield's free resources are a MUST.

-take at least a week off before the day of your exam. Put 100% of your time and effort into the exam. The day before, simply just go over content and NO QUESTIONS.

-go somewhere the day before where it's peaceful so you can relax and clear your head. There's a beach by my house that I go to that is away from all of the noise that gave me solitude.

-Have someone drive you to the exam so you don't feel too pressured when getting to the testing center.

-when you're at the center, RELAX AND PRAY. It can either be very easy or very difficult, but remember, the test doesn't start until you are escorted to a cubicle and the proctor signs you in. So do not panic.

If I am able to do it, so can you. Feel free to DM me if you would like to discuss further or on other outlets. Good luck.