Midterm season is upon us. Students everywhere are facing unmeasurable amounts of stress, anxiety, and loneliness. While many students know that asking for help is critical to surviving this season of stress, they find the act of asking for help intimidating. So, students continue to battle their demons alone.
Asking for help can alleviate the student’s workload, increase their mental wellness, and support their overall academic success and personal wellbeing. Today, I will share my three simple, anxiety-free steps to ask for help.
Step 1: Plan what you want to ask.
Take the time to plan out what you need to ask and what you hope to gain from asking for help. For example, imagine you are struggling with a math concept that you know is going to be on this upcoming exam. Copy the problem down, highlight the specific parts of the problem that are confusing you, and have an end goal in mind. In this specific example, your end goal would be learning how to properly solve the problem and get the right answer.
This step can extend to asking for help for personal reasons. If you are struggling to get out of bed in the morning, ask a friend to get coffee with you that day. You will be asking for coffee, but also for the company of a friend and a reason to get out of bed.
Step 2: Recognize where to get help.
Academic resources are usually readily available online. Search your class and find out when your professor holds office hours, how to get in touch with your academic advisor, or how to contact your TA. Also, check your class syllabi outline because it has professor information such as contact information and the procedure used to contact them.
Many campuses offer mental health resources that can be easily found online. The University of Illinois offers counseling and other resources here.
Step 3: Asking for help is a sign of strength.
Asking for help is a sign of confidence and resourcefulness; it proves you are a problem solver. Asking for help strengthens relationships with others because it proves that you trust and are able to rely on someone else.
Additionally, asking for help is a sign of self-awareness and an eagerness for growth. If you go to office hours for help on a math problem, it proves you are aware of what you understand and don’t understand, and further shows your enthusiasm to learn and grow in that subject.
Good luck with midterms, everyone! Remember to ask for help when you need it and know you are more than any grade you get.