Being Proactive: Stress Management For College Students

A college student may have to deal with stress while away at college.  It isn’t a secret that stress can contribute to psychological and physical health problems.  Add the stress of college and hormones that are raging and you put stress on a student who may be away from home for the first time.  The key to a well-balanced college life is a balance between intellectual, social, and personal development.  In other words, work hard but have some fun too!  There are specific ways to manage your stress proactively.

One of the most important ways you can manage stress is to keep a regular workout schedule.  Exercising at least every other day is important to the average college student and not just for the star athlete.  Exercise is a great way to beat stress and there are many ways you can have fun and exercise on campus.  Many campuses have areas where students can work out, swim, jog or take part in other forms of exercise.  You must not see this as recreation time and not exercise.  It is not recreation time; it is a proactive move to help cope with the stress that accompanies college.

Setting short-term and long-term goals will help you mark your progress and aid in time management.  It is so satisfying to mark completed items off your to-do list.  Setting long-term goals for the semester or for the year will help you break down those goals into manageable pieces.  It will keep you from being overwhelmed by the projects you have to complete, or come up on a term deadline and not be prepared for your term paper or essay.  Managing your time will help ease stress.  Make a schedule and stick with it!  Remember to schedule exercise time and fun activities to balance out the work you are doing.

Find some time alone each day that you can relax in and not feel guilty about not “doing” something.  Take the time to read a book for fun, take a walk, call your parents, or write in a journal.  Meditation and prayer are important stress relievers.

Ask yourself if the issue you are facing will affect your long-term goals.  Is it worth getting upset about?  In other words, “don’t sweat the small stuff.”  Recognize there is some things you can change and others are beyond your control.  Pray the serenity prayer and let go of the items that you can’t control.

Keep your sense of humor.  Laughter is good medicine, and keeping your thinking positive will also help you cope with stress.  Read the comics, a funny book, or listen to a silly CD.  Laughing can erase the stress hormones and leave you feeling physically and emotionally better.

Above all, communicate.  Talk to people you trust, confide in a counselor if you are feeling overwhelmed.  Talking to your roommate, a counselor, friend, or family member can help you keep problems in prospective and allows you to look at all sides of the issue.
Talking to a pastor, best friend, professor, or your significant other will help you know you are not alone and help in easing stress.