--- title: "Test & Academic Anxiety Therapy | Albany & Berkeley | RhythmLife" description: "Therapy for test and academic anxiety with Anna Talamo, LMFT — for students, graduate researchers and returning learners. Albany, CA and online in CA and TX." lang: en json-ld: | [ { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://rhythmlife.lovable.app" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Test & Academic Anxiety", "item": "https://rhythmlife.lovable.app/test-and-academic-anxiety" } ] }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "MedicalTherapy", "@id": "https://rhythmlife.lovable.app/test-and-academic-anxiety#service", "name": "Test & Academic Anxiety Therapy", "description": "Trauma-informed therapy for exam blanking, defense anxiety and academic performance blocks.", "url": "https://rhythmlife.lovable.app/test-and-academic-anxiety", "provider": { "@id": "https://rhythmlife.lovable.app#practitioner" } } ] --- [Skip to content](#main) [![RhythmLife Psychotherapy](/__l5e/assets-v1/56e43a46-e1c2-4c8a-a5f9-154bfceb1e79/rhythmlife-logo.png)](/) [Home](/)[About](/about) Services - [Individual Therapy](/therapy-services) - [Extended Sessions](/extended-sessions) - [Therapy Intensives](/therapy-intensives) - [EMDR and Brainspotting Intensives](/emdr-intensives) - [Flash and EFT Intensives](/flash-technique-intensives) - [EMDR](/emdr) - [Flash Technique](/flash-technique) - [EFT & Matrix Reimprinting](/eft) - [Brainspotting](/brainspotting) - [EMDR vs Brainspotting](/emdr-vs-brainspotting) - [Attachment-Focused EMDR](/attachment-focused-emdr) - [Resource Tapping](/resource-tapping) - [Matrix Reimprinting](/matrix-reimprinting) - [EMDR vs Flash Technique](/emdr-vs-flash-technique) - [What Is Bilateral Stimulation?](/what-is-bilateral-stimulation) - [Is EMDR Right for Me?](/is-emdr-right-for-me) What I Help With - [Trauma Therapy](/trauma-therapy) - [PTSD Treatment](/ptsd-treatment) - [Complex PTSD (C-PTSD)](/complex-ptsd) - [Childhood Trauma (Adults)](/childhood-trauma) - [Childhood Sexual Abuse](/childhood-sexual-abuse) - [After a Car Accident](/car-accident-trauma) - [Anxiety Therapy](/anxiety-therapy) - [Panic Attacks](/panic-attacks) - [Social Anxiety](/social-anxiety) - [Performance Anxiety](/performance-anxiety) - [Musicians & Performers](/musicians-and-performers) - [Sports Performance Anxiety](/sports-performance-anxiety) - [Test & Academic Anxiety](/test-and-academic-anxiety) - [Depression](/depression-therapy) - [Emotional Numbness](/emotional-numbness) - [Feeling Stuck](/feeling-stuck) - [Burnout & Chronic Stress](/burnout-and-chronic-stress) - [Grief and Loss](/grief-and-loss) - [Life Transitions](/life-transitions) - [Relationship Difficulties](/relationship-difficulties) - [When Talk Therapy Isn't Enough](/therapy-beyond-talk) - [Therapy for Adults](/therapy-for-adults) - [Therapy for Older Adults](/therapy-for-seniors) - [Therapy for Creatives](/therapy-for-creatives) - [Therapy for Professionals](/therapy-for-professionals) Locations - [All locations](/locations) - [Albany, CA](/albany-ca) - [Berkeley, CA](/berkeley-ca) - [El Cerrito, CA](/el-cerrito-ca) - [Kensington, CA](/kensington-ca) - [Oakland, CA](/oakland-ca) - [Online — California](/online-therapy-california) - [Online — Texas](/online-therapy-texas) - [Texas — Trauma Therapy](/texas/trauma-therapy-online) - [Texas — EMDR](/texas/emdr-therapy-online) - [Texas — Flash Technique](/texas/flash-technique-online) [Rates](/rates)[Contact](/contact)[Free Consultation](/contact) WHEN YOU KNOW IT AND CAN'T REACH IT # Test and academic anxiety You knew it last night. You know it now, walking out. For the ninety minutes in between, it was behind glass. That gap between preparation and access is its own particular misery, and it isn't a study-skills problem. ## What's happening Under sufficient threat, the systems you need for recall and flexible thinking get deprioritized in favor of ones useful for physical danger. That's not a metaphor — it's why blanking feels physical. The nervous system is making a threat assessment faster than conscious thought, usually informed by something older than this exam. ## Who I see Undergraduates, graduate students, people in professional qualification, and returning students who've been out of formal study for years. The East Bay has a lot of all four. Also common: oral defense and presentation anxiety in academic settings. ## The approach EMDR or Flash for the earlier experiences feeding it — a humiliation, a failure, a teacher. EFT for something usable outside the exam hall. Brainspotting when the block is bodily and you can't articulate it. Fit ## You might recognize - Blanking on material you demonstrably know - Anxiety starting weeks before, not on the day - Physical symptoms — nausea, sleep loss, racing heart - Avoiding or deferring assessments - A history of one bad exam that set the pattern ## Knowing it isn't the problem. Reaching it is. Book a free 15-minute consultation. [Schedule a free consultation](/contact) RhythmLife Psychotherapy Anna Talamo, LMFT Healing beyond talk — trauma therapy blending EMDR, Flash Technique, EFT and Brainspotting. In-person in Albany, California and telehealth across CA and TX. RhythmLife Psychotherapy 1035 San Pablo Avenue, Suite 8, #4 Albany, CA 94706 [(510) 323-2488](tel:+15103232488) ### Explore - [Home](/) - [About Anna](/about) - [Services](/therapy-services) - [Rates](/rates) - [FAQ](/faqs) - [Blog](/blog) - [Free Consultation](/free-consultation) - [Contact](/contact) ### Approaches - [EMDR](/emdr) - [Flash Technique](/flash-technique) - [EFT & Matrix Reimprinting](/eft) - [Brainspotting](/brainspotting) - [EMDR vs Brainspotting](/emdr-vs-brainspotting) ### Sessions & Intensives - [Extended Sessions](/extended-sessions) - [Therapy Intensives](/therapy-intensives) - [EMDR and Brainspotting Intensives](/emdr-intensives) - [Flash and EFT Intensives](/flash-technique-intensives) ### What I Help With - [Trauma Therapy](/trauma-therapy) - [PTSD Treatment](/ptsd-treatment) - [Complex PTSD (C-PTSD)](/complex-ptsd) - [Childhood Trauma (Adults)](/childhood-trauma) - [Anxiety Therapy](/anxiety-therapy) - [Performance Anxiety](/performance-anxiety) - [Burnout & Chronic Stress](/burnout-and-chronic-stress) - [Grief and Loss](/grief-and-loss) - [Life Transitions](/life-transitions) - [Relationship Difficulties](/relationship-difficulties) - [When Talk Therapy Isn't Enough](/therapy-beyond-talk) - [Therapy for Adults](/therapy-for-adults) - [Therapy for Older Adults](/therapy-for-seniors) ### Important information 1. Using this site or the contact form does not create a therapist–client relationship. 2. This contact form is not a secure or confidential channel — please don't share health or medical details. 3. Therapy outcomes vary and are not guaranteed. 4. In a crisis or emergency, call or text [988](tel:988) or call [911](tel:911). 5. Anna Talamo is licensed in California (LMFT #40713) and Texas (LMFT #205480); therapy is available only to clients located in those states at the time of session. 6. [Privacy policy](/privacy-policy) · [Terms of service](/terms-of-service) © 2026 Lipschutz Talamo Inc (DBA Anna Talamo, MFT). All rights reserved. Website by [Automaus.ai](https://automaus.ai)