Okay so I've been lurking here for months and I feel like I owe it to this community to share what finally got me over the finish line. Failed my first attempt in February with a 68% (passing is 75%) and I was honestly ready to give up on the whole thing. Took three months off, came back in May, and passed with an 82%. Here's the thing — I was studying the wrong way the first time.
The biggest shift was actually doing timed practice under real exam conditions instead of just reading the material. I found a solid AHIC practice test resource that mirrored the actual question format way better than the official prep materials, and doing those weekly made a huge difference in how I approached the knowledge domains. Also grabbed a study guide that broke down health informatics competencies by category — that structural approach helped me stop cramming random facts.
For anyone else prepping, my biggest exam tips: don't skip the data governance section (it's heavier than you'd expect), and budget at least 6 weeks if you're working full-time. Happy to answer questions about specific domains if anyone's stuck.