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Stress in a college student's life
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Stress in a college student's life
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College Stress College students confront many challenges in pursuit of their educational goals. Between trying to make the grade and finding a job in a market that continues to stagnate, there 's more pressure than ever before to succeed. College tuition now a days is out of this world and with the increase of unemployment in this nation some parents cannot pay for their child to attend college. With society changing as a whole, some students now have to pay for their college tuition due to the unfortunate happenings of their parents not having jobs. When a misfortune like this happens the student who is in college, plays a collegium sport, spends hours on homework and also has a job that is necessary to pay the bills. Stress soon starts …show more content…
In most cases stress is not healthy and can lead to dangerous actions. The stress in an average college student can be unbearable and I ask you, how can college students not be stressed out? The three main sources of stress that can be involved in a student’s life are psychological, college transition, and physical stressors. Stress is the human bodies way of responding to any kind of demand. Stress can be experienced in both good and bad situations. Bruce Charlton, author of Stress wrote, “When people feel stressed by something going on around them, their bodies react by releasing chemicals into the blood. These chemicals give people more energy and strength, which can be a good thing if their stress is caused by physical danger” (Charlton 155). Although this statement can also be considered a bad thing, human’s stress is a response to something that he or she has experienced physically or emotionally. For example, a college student is rushing from one end of campus to the other, trying to make it to the next class on time. Since classes are scheduled back-to-back, there is not much time to eat. This week, the student …show more content…
When a student makes the big transition from high school to college there are a lot of different experiences and environments that the student may or may not be accustomed to. Some of these experiences or environments may include, large classes, roommates, independent living, long hours of studying, relationships, parties, alcohol, and drugs. Stress levels seem to be at the highest when a student is an environment that they are not familiar with. For example, a student whose math class in high school had 40 students’ experiences a dramatic difference with the college math class they are in now that is attended by 300 students. The situation is now extremely different and the transition is drastic. Now this student is not only considered to be a number in the class but also is limited to the time that he or she may need for extra help from the professor. That one on one time is no longer available. Instead now the student must meet a group of people that attend the same math class and develop a study group. For some this may not seem to be a problem especially if the student is outgoing and friendly. Although for others this is one of the biggest challenges in college that they face. “Loneliness is usually visible in interpersonal behavior. Lonely college students spend more time alone and find it harder to make friends. Although lonely and non lonely student do not differ in terms of
Students entering college for the first time become concern with their college life. The students are on their own once they enter college. There are no parents or guardians telling them when to do homework, when to go to bed, or how to eat healthy. These student are now responsible on how they are going to succeed in school and meet their own needs. From the beginning, these students wonder what their experience is going to be like and are they going to handle the demands from college. Students are becoming more stressful due to academic demands, social life, and work. First-year college students should receive more help from school to learn how to help themselves and become independent.
While transitioning into college, socialization is very important, but students should recognize the bigger picture (hbr.org). Everything might be an essential for college, only if students are able to regulate them nicely, in order to prevent stress. Create the perfect routine to reduce the decision about what to do every day. (hbr.org). Always take find time to do you hobbies, or just something that is in your interest. This can pull minds out of the stressful day, so it have time to “replenish your energy” (hbr.org). Students should always review the progress, and whether they approached their goals (hbr.org). No one is perfect, don’t always shoot for perfection, because it will only add on stress. To handle stress, talk to someone about your problems, one of the worst way to handle stress is to hold the feelings in. There are also psychologists on campus to help students with their needs. Stress will go away, if treated correctly, if not it will lead to bigger
Author Melissa Campbell stated, “All jobs, regardless of what they are, involve some level of stress”. Some may say that the stress a student endures throughout college, can prepare them for what the future holds, but in actuality stress is stress. No matter what form can take a tole on a student. Students will be stressed for many years to come in their future. Whether it be their first job interview, marriage, or welcoming a new member to the family. The possible four years at college need to be as stress free as possible. Their needs to be some types of fun involved even though they are students first. Lastly, “Jobs produce stress not just in terms of the actual work itself but also in terms of dealing with your co-workers”(Cooper). College is suppose to be about meeting new people, forming a social life. There could be enough possible stress with roommates or professors, there is no need for stress from co-workers or management making the college experience less
Many first year college students face problems as they enter a new educational environment that is very different than that of high school. However, the common problem is that many first year students become stressed. For many students, college is supposed to be the most fun time of their life; however, their fun can be restricted if it is limited by stress and other mental illnesses. According to the National Health Ministries (2006), stress is caused by “greater academic demands,” the feeling of being independent from family, “financial responsibility,” homesickness, being exposed to meeting new people, peer pressure, “awareness of one’s own sexual identity,” and the abuse of drugs and alcohol (p. 2). However, the causes to first year students’ stress mainly include academic demand, parents, finance, and peer pressure.
Driscoll, Emily. “Stress in College: What Causes it and How to Combat it.” Online posting. 31
College for an incoming freshman is exciting, however, it is often focused on the social aspect such as the connections that can be attained through Greek life, parties and independence. Due to the social interactions, freshmen tend to drop out of college after their first year. Focusing on what college is meant for can prevent these situations. The pressures of college such as impressing parents, and maintain a high standard GPA-wise can lead to stress and freeze a student from achieving the proper academic performance. During the mid 1900s, college was considered more of a luxury than anything; people would attend college exclusively to acquire knowledge in hopes of obtaining a career after graduation. People in the twenty-first century, however, attend college to get away from home and enjoy freedom at parties. Education is taken lightly, and those who feel that education isn’t the main focus of college should not apply for sakes of the greater good.
Going to college can be an exciting new experience that can challenge a person more than he or she thought was possible. Attending college, especially for the first time, can be a very stressful time in a person’s life. Some of the stress that is associated with attending college are living in a new place, having to meet new people, having new responsibilities, and of course the homework that goes along with taking classes. If a person does not learn to cope with these stressors in a healthy way, that person may become very overwhelmed and possibly depressed (Hoeger & Hoeger, 2010) .To keep one’s body and mind safe from the overexposure of stress, they can practice the following techniques.
...icantly. Eating a balanced diet, exercising and visiting healthy facilities is no longer their duties, overall health is affected gradually. Stress changes the relationship of different acquaintances. Stressed persons tend to live alone thus detaching themselves from their friends, classmate, family, and even lecturers. Students turn to be irritable and defensive. Stressed and defensive characters will be opposed to the right schedule and they miss classes and final exams. The student could have done pretty well if he/she spent a stress free life in college.
Stress is defined as “any circumstance that threatens or is perceived to threaten one’s well-being and thereby tax one’s coping abilities” (Weiten & Lloyd, 2006, p. 72). Stress is a natural event that exists literally in all areas of one’s life. It can be embedded in the environment, culture, or perception of an event or idea. Stress is a constant burden, and can be detrimental to one’s physical and mental health. However, stress can also provide beneficial effects; it can satisfy one’s need for stimulation and challenge, promote personal growth, and can provide an individual with the tools to cope with, and be less affected by tomorrow’s stress (Weiten & Lloyd, 2006, p. 93).
Leaving home for the first time and going away for school can be very difficult for some people. In many cases for college freshmen this is their first time being away from their home and parents. Many times they get home sick and want to isolate themselves. They have to get into a new routine of going to school, and change can be very difficult. It is definitely hard to get into the swing of college. They have to navigate through classes in a new format while living away from all the comforts of parents. A college student’s life usually consists of attending classes, long hours of studying, working at a job (sometimes), and having a social life. Some students work at a job or study harder than others, but they are all trying to get degrees so maybe one day they will have meaningful and significant lives. It is a constant struggle for everyone who is trying desperately to make him or herself into a success. And every college student wants to be involved with something in order to further their education, or just have fun. There are lots of new opportunities out there. The struggle consists of demands on time, financial pressures, parental pressure and conflicts, interpersonal conflicts, managing freedom, peer and academic pressure and the transitional period to a new academic environment (Stanford University 4). All of these factors combined can cause emotional disturbances and one of the most common is stress.
Stress is the combination of psychological, physiological, and behavioral reactions that people have in response to events that threaten or challenge them. Stress can be good or bad. Sometimes, stress is helpful, providing people with the extra energy or alertness they need. Stress could give a runner the edge he or she needs to persevere in a marathon, for example. This good kind of stress is called eustress. Unfortunately, stress is often not helpful and can even be harmful when not managed effectively. Stress could make a salesperson buckle under the pressure while trying to make a sales pitch at an important business meeting, for example. Moreover, stress can increase the risk of developing health problems, such as cardiovascular disease and anxiety disorders. This bad kind of stress is called distress, the kind of stress that people usually are referring to when they use the word stress.
Stress is defined in the dictionary as “state of mental tension and worry caused by problems in your life”. Everyone encounters stress in their life caused by many different variables in life and we all cope with in different ways. The way one copes with the stress is how it can affect our body. Some take to working out, eating healthy, take breaks from what is stressing you out and getting plenty of sleep which are good ways to cope with it. Some take to other coping mechanisms that are not very great for the body. Some examples are stress eating, abuse of drugs and alcohol, bottling up the stress, and depression. These bad methods can cause serious damage to one’s health on the body.
First, stress is defined as an unpleasant state of emotional and physiological arousal that people experience in situations that they perceive as dangerous or threatening to their well being (Patel, 14). Stress is a universal feeling to everyone but the word stress means different things to different people. Some people define stress as events or situations that cause them to feel tension, pressure or negative emotions such as anxiety or anger (Patel, 15). Other people may view stress as a process involving a person’s interpretation and response to a threatening event. In any case, stress has many facets of how one perceives and responds to the certain predicament that is ailing them.
Stress presents itself in different ways. Some students may experience changes in sleep and eating patterns, increased frequency of headaches, increased levels of frustration and anger, being more irritable than normal, recurring colds and minor illnesses, frequent muscle aches and tightness, being more disorganized than usual, greater sense of persistent time pressure and increased difficulty in getting things done. Stressed college students may express multiple symptoms at once, which may render them incapable of completing assignments or even doing daily tasks. It is important to learn how to recognize when stress levels are out of control. The most dangerous thing about stress is how easily it can creep up on students. They get used to it and it starts to feels familiar. Students do not notice how much it is affecting them, even as it takes a heavy toll. The signs and symptoms of stress overload can be almost anything. Stress affects the mind, body, and behavior in many ways, ...
"Stress is a natural physical and mental reaction to both good and bad experiences which can be beneficial to your health and safety." (8 Ways Stress Is More Dangerous Than You Think) Everyone 's body responds to stress by releasing hormones, also, you brain receives more oxygen. Stress starts to occur when we become worried about a task or responsibilities we face. Major stress is called chronic stress. It can cause symptoms that can affect your health in a larger way. Some people may say that they succeed more under stress, but sadly, that’s rarely the case. Research has shown that "stress makes a person more likely to make mistakes" (Stress Symptoms, Signs, & Causes). For most people, stress is extremely normal for them that they don 't see it as anything but ordinary. However, stress can motivate someone while under pressure and even get you through a tough or dangerous