College is a time of exploration and growth. The main purpose of college is not to gain knowledge on various subjects. In my opinion, that is the secondary objective. The most important purpose of college is to introduce students to challenges, responsibilities, and life principles. During college, every student will face plenty of setbacks and problems. While some students perceive their challenges as stressful burdens, others choose to see them as amazing growth opportunities.
Stress in college students is one of the most commonly met symptoms across the world. Stress is a mind and body reaction that’s caused by both internal and external stimuli. It mostly arises when we have to deal with a lot of work, when we’re under pressure, when we’re judged, when we stop focusing on our physical and mental health, and the list goes on.
In today’s post, I’m going to share seven stress management techniques that will help you create a better student lifestyle.
Sleep Well and Have a Morning Routine
Did you know that sleep deprivation is one of the most subtle causes of stress among college students? The trickiest thing about sleep deprivation is that you’re often not aware that you’re suffering sleep debt. Your mind will make you think that you’re functioning just fine, but the actual truth is that both your mind and body are not working at their full potential.
The best way to avoid sleep deprivation and stress is to build healthy habits. Try your best to go to bed at the same hour each day and wake up with a morning routine plan. This can involve exercising, drinking a glass of lemon water, listening to relaxing music, cooking a healthy breakfast, establishing the “to-do” list, and so on.
Positive Thinking
Positive thinking is more important than you think. Every thought has a specific vibration. If it’s positive, that vibration will be high. If it’s negative, the vibration will be low.
Throughout a day, you may be having a million thoughts. If most of them are negative, you’re going to experience stress, anxiety, depression, procrastination, and laziness. If you’re training your mind to think positively, you’ll attract good mental qualities like optimism, enhanced problem-solving, peace of mind, and so on.
You Are Not Your Thoughts and Emotions
Stress is often overwhelming because we identify ourselves with it. We often say, “I’m stressed,” and when we do so, we are validating a subconscious belief that will quickly become our reality.
It’s critically important to understand that you are not your thoughts and emotions. You have thoughts and emotions, but you are not them. Perceive them like grey clouds that come and go. They’re temporary, and you can speed up their passing by acknowledging your power to do so.
Exercise Every Day
There are so many interesting essay topics about stress that show the importance of exercise when dealing with stressful times. Whenever you exercise, you’re eliminating toxins and consuming the negative energy that you’ve stored throughout time. If you exercise daily, you’ll improve your dopamine and endorphins levels. This will immediately lead to increased motivation, inspiration, calmness, and happiness.
You don't need to get an expensive gym membership, running can be a great way to get fit, all you need to buy is a pair of running pants and you are good to go!"
Eliminate Procrastination
Procrastination is a natural mechanism that our brains leverage to avoid pain and attract pleasure. Whenever we have to deal with essays, assignments, and exams, our minds are trying to find quick solutions to what we perceive as pain.
To combat procrastination, you need to rewire your beliefs. You have to stop perceiving your academic assignments as burdens and start seeing them as good opportunities to improve yourself.
When procrastination takes over, stress is always going to follow. Being threatened by a close deadline is the most stressful thing that college students deal with on a day-to-day basis.
Train Your Willpower
Willpower is a trainable skill, not a born talent. When you plan to do something, you need to follow through. If you do that, your willpower gains extra strength. The more you procrastinate and ditch your objectives, the less willpower you’ll have.
Moreover, when you have a strong will, you can focus your attention on the things that truly matter. When you’re under stress, you’ll be able to shift your attention from the negative stuff to the positive ones.
For example, if you’re stressed about an exam, you can use your willpower to calm down and start working without allowing distractions to pop in. Eventually, the stress will go away because you were able to control it using your will.
Takeaways
Stress management is one of the primordial skills that students should practice consistently in order to stay healthy, productive, and happy. If you learn how to deal with anxiety, stress, and all the other dis-empowering emotions that you stumble upon during your academic journey, you’re already halfway to success and happiness.
As they say – happiness is not an external factor but rather an internal trait that we can create by ourselves. Use our tips and tricks to battle stress every time it arises and keep growing and growing every day of your college life!
BIO: Emma Rundle is a renowned academic tutor, psychologist, and soon-to-be author. Her main objective is to help students understand the main causes of stress and offer them palpable solutions for better mental health. On top of that, she’s regularly getting involved in various international non-profit movements. In her free time, she travels, studies German, and plays basketball.
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