For Jewanda Lanier, when stress strikes during finals she turns to snacking and spending time with friends to relieve it.
Taylor Yester’s stress relief comes in the form of exercise and taking time out of her day, when possible, to lay down and relax.
Alex Popichak channels his stress into his work to help him make it through.
These students were all reflecting on a study on freshman college students that suggests a newfound pressure and workload is causing them to suffer from stress, depression and declining mental health.
Along with this, Boston University’s director of Behavioral Medicine, Carrie Landa, reports that stress can be managed and coped with by making sure you are getting enough sleep, exercising and socializing.
“Remind yourself it [stress] can be normal, practice mindfulness, engage in an activity that makes you feel good, whether it’s exercise, community service, or a social activity,” says Landa in an interview with Boston University Today.
The study done by the Cooperative Institutional Research Program in 2014, called the “The American Freshman: Fall Norms 2014,” surveyed 153,015 first year college students. They researched not only an increase in stress in these students but also the decrease in time spent socializing with friends and a decline in alcohol and tobacco use. The results of the study were very telling and report that student’s self-reported emotional health had dropped to its lowest level ever recorded, 50.7%. In addition to this, the number of students who feel frequently depressed rose 3.4 percentage points higher than the 2009 study, to 9.5%.
“I don’t think I have depression, but those anxious feelings that underlie when I lie awake at night have increased since starting college,” says Alex Popichak.
Many other students have said similar, however, most seem to have an increase in anxiety and stress rather than depression.
“I wouldn’t say depression is what I’m feeling, it’s more so a lot of anxiety to get all of my work done on time which leads to a lot of added stress,” says Cameron Finney.
For many students, much of their stress comes from the extra amount of pressure they feel from their professors in order to succeed and do well in their courses.
“The pressure that professors put on you to be excellent all the time is exhausting,” says Jess Paterchak.
Along with this, students are also feeling more pressure due to the amount of work they have to do plus getting involved in extracurricular activities.
“For me personally, I am on an accelerated pathway, so I have intense pressure to do extremely well in all of my classes, but to still make time to volunteer and get hours in for the route that I am focusing on,” says Taylor Yester.
Time management also plays a huge role in many student’s increased feeling of stress.
“Time management is probably the hardest thing about college right now because it’s such a delicate balance between setting aside time for your school work, extra activities, socializing and down time for yourself,” says Jewanda Lanier.
So in order to manage their time wisely, students are doing a variety of things.
“I think the best thing to do is to get a daily planner and to write your schedule down, seeing in writing how your schedule will play out makes all of the difference for me,” Yester says.
Along with this, some students say to-do lists really help them manage their time wisely.
“Making to-do lists really keeps me in check, and there’s nothing more rewarding than checking off what I’ve done and being able to see my progress,” says Paterchak.
One very common factor of stress among first-year college students is the fact that they are essentially living on their own.
“I’m from Maryland, so when I first got here learning how to be on my own was not only scary because I was so far away from home, but also because it’s something I’ve never experienced before,” says Katie Schuster.
For others who are closer to home, the anxiety of being on their own still stands.
“In college, it is time for us to be responsible for ourselves. We are in charge of turning in our assignments on time, waking up for classes, and staying healthy- all in one, which is a bit scary at first,” says Yester.
So, with all this added stress in college, many students are wondering how they can manage and cope with it all. There are a slew of things students are doing to try and deal with all the stress and pressure they are dealing with.
“When I have downtime, I like to have a movie night with my friends that way we can all decompress together,” says Olivia Valyo.
Others resort to exercise to relieve stress.
“I manage my stress by working out because it always helps relieve and mental build up that I am dealing with,” says Yester.
For others, turning to snacking comes naturally when dealing with a lot of stress.
“I stress eat, which is so bad to do, but it’s something I’ve always done and it comforts me,” Lanier says.
There are numerous other ways to reduce stress in order to stay happy and enjoy your college experience. The Anxiety and Depression Association of American reports that exercising can greatly improve your mental health and decrease your stress. They recommend doing things as simple as going for a walk and also recommend that you exercise with a friend in order to help each other stay motivated.
They also recommend keeping a well-balanced diet in order to keep you energized and keep your body healthy. The Anxiety and Depression Association of American also says to avoid caffeine because it keeps you wired and may cause you to lose sleep, which is something your body desperately needs in times of stress.
While college is a stressful time for all, first-year students, in particular, there are many ways to cope with it in order to ensure that you not only succeed in your college career, but to ensure that you enjoy your time while you can.