Photo by Jad Limcaco
Anxiety can be said to manage 99 percent of a college student’s day to day life. The test anxiety, relationship anxiety, family anxiety, financial anxiety and more, can become enough to shut down a person completely.
The health of a student’s academic career can be crushed by anxiety without being aware of it. The panic attack here and there, the missed assignment and the failed test, can all be results of an anxiety problem. Anxiety can be compared to that little bead of sweat that rolls down your brow when you have just missed a car coming a little too close, or the butterflies in your stomach before speaking to an audience. These are all cases of anxious events, however, they cannot be compared to the debilitating effect of an anxiety-driven life.
Anxiety can affect its victim in different fashions. It can alter the thought pattern of the day, causing second guessing about a decision that must be made, or the putting off of an important task to the point of never getting it accomplished. Several individuals can be stereotyped as lazy or non-committed when, in reality, it is because of something that cannot be seen from the outside. We often place unneeded judgment on these individuals, causing further anxiety.
While the affected thought pattern can be debilitating in itself, the physical effects can be devastating as well. A panic attack is the best example of this being exhibited. The skin becomes flushed, the heart beats out of your chest to your ears and the legs become weak. By no means is this brought on purposefully, which can be attested to by anyone who has experienced a panic attack. It can be described as having a close resemblance to a near-death experience. The main cause of this is the body’s actions and the mind communicating that something terribly awful is going on even if there is not.
Support and a helping hand can be vital to those who suffer from anxiety. Slowing breathing can be a huge coping mechanism, designed to slow down the race of adrenaline and the rush of the mind in a panic attack. The need to set goals and personal triumphs can be motivations to those who are halted mentally by their anxiety.
One technique to bring yourself through your day is to make the smallest part of the day a matter of importance. The focus can be as small as choosing which path you will drive today. Make it a matter of importance to choose the most relaxing option, and learn to look forward to it through the day. This could also be a nightly routine, such as a bubble bath or writing in a journal.
I am someone who has dealt with anxiety, and I can say it can be conquered. The management of my anxiety has included taking medication at low points and to just take time to stop and breathe deeply. I have survived through it, and I am confident in saying other victims of anxiety have the same prospects for a better tomorrow and a great today!