5 Facts to Help Decrease School Stress

Are you working nearly full-time, enrolled in a nursing degree program, and juggling a full-time course load? You’re not alone. Chances are you’re stressed out. Today, the word “college” means something different than it did years ago.

Parents still send their kids off to school and tell them that “these will be the best years” of their lives but some of these parents are not aware that their kids’ college experiences really depend upon how well they cope with stress. According to the CIRP Freshman Survey, freshman are arriving on campus already stressed out and “students’ emotional health levels are at their lowest since the survey started in 1985.”  No, Facebook isn’t taking the blame here.

In fact, Facebook, has partnered with the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. This social media giant wants its 800 million users to take seriously its system to flag violent or suicidal messages. If a person notices someone’s status update that says he or she wants to kill themself, friends can click on ‘report suicidal content’ link. Each of these reports will be monitored and a suicidal person can be connected with a suicide prevention specialist whether in a Web chat room or through live phone support.

Awareness can usher in solutions. There has been a recent surge in the number of students who don’t manage the stresses of college well and end up transferring or dropping out and a larger percent turn to alcohol. Robert A. Rees and Jeff Goelitz, authors of The College De-Stress Handbook:  Keeping Cool Under Pressure from the Inside Out, address proven methods for handling stress within higher education.

Goelitz states 5 facts about stress that every college student should know:

1. Stress can cause smart people to do stupid things: Simply, stress causes ‘cortical inhibition.’ Stress inhibits the decision-making area of the brain and can negatively affect reaction times.

2. The human body doesn’t distinguish between big stressors and small ones: Basically, any stressful event creates 1,400 biochemical reactions in the body. Stress that’s not properly dealt with can cause loss of energy, premature aging, and decreased cognitive functioning.

3. Stress can become “normal” for your body: If large amounts of stress are regularly experienced, the brain rewires itself to identify this as your new emotional baseline. Then, insomnia, obesity, depression, and more can surface as your body struggles to deal with the continual flood of the stress hormone, cortisol.

4. Stress can be managed: People can learn how to shift their emotional state by using emotion-refocusing techniques. Deep breathing, thinking slowly, and focusing on their heartbeats can create positive feelings.

5. Studying what you love=less stress: An expert on positive emotions, Barbara Frederickson, says people are “genetically programmed to seek positive emotions such as love and joy.” If students choose a degree path they enjoy, it’s a win-win situation. Why fight biology?

Ultimately, it’s up to you to get the facts about stress and, if need be, do something for yourself to help manage it. You don’t have to feel like you’re alone. You’re not. Find someone knowledgeable who you can trust and talk to them about it. Your school’s mental health center is a good place to start. Stress doesn’t have to rule your life. Take control because you deserve it!