Spring break is old news. It’s time to start worrying about those forgotten papers, summer job applications and maybe even finals. Stressed? Well, you are not alone.
“Stress? I don’t even know where to begin,” said Megan Donavan ’05
“Honestly, I have so much to do that finding time to eat with my friends becomes a menial task,” she said
With stress being attributed to the rise of depression and anxiety among college students, it’s important to understand the severity of unmanaged stress and know how to avoid personal damage.
When Roger B. Duncan, professor of philosophy, was in college during the early 1960s, he feels that he didn’t have as much to worry about as students do now.
“I finally saw that feeling of anxiety and fear about the future in the students that didn’t exist 10 years ago, and certainly not 30,” he said about his first year teaching.
“There is a lack of leisure and sense of enjoyment these days,” he said. “Students are ‘no thrills, don’t joke, give me what I have to do.’ There is an absence of the freedom to enjoy.”
Today the stressed out college student can be found anywhere. Stress is a person’s physical, emotional, and mental reaction to tension, pressure, and change.
While stress is normal for any college student. It’s too much stress that can be a problem.
Many students can relate to feeling stressed out.
“So I stay up all night to study. I know the material inside our and backwards. I thought I could take a nap, but I never woke up,” said Christa Szantyr ’05. “I missed my exam, and I’m still waiting to hear from the teacher if I will fail!
Lauren Collines ’04 has also felt like Szantyr. “I am a huge perfectionist and when I get really stressed out, I get sick, a sore throat and maybe a fever.
She added, “I can always tell before too, because I get really irritable. I tend not to treat people around me very well.”
Signs of stress include increased frustration, difficulties making decisions, problems sleeping and or eating, increased use of alcohol and drugs, acne, frequent headaches and colds, just to name a few.
Unmanaged stress can actually lead to anxiety, over eating, depression and even a heart attack.
The Hartford Courant reported last March that with the rise of pressure students face, nationally, colleges are seeing an increasing number of students who are seeking mental health services. The requests are overwhelming the colleges’ available resources.
The counseling services at Fairfield, located in Dolan Hall, also seems to be following this trend.
After attempts to contact them with questions about their services, Elise Harrison, a counselor at the Health Center, responded that they were simply just too busy.
Readily available, however, were handouts and pamphlets regarding ways to recognize and handle stress. Common of all their suggestions: plan for stressful times.
“I have schedules and to-do lists posted all around my desk,” said Maura Rafuse ’06. “Not that I actually get to everything but writing it down at least makes me feel more in control and the situations seems more manageable.”
Anticipating potential stressful situations can also help you decide how to prepare, prioritize, handle, or avoid those times.
If it’s more than time management that’s infringing on what’s supposed to be the best years of your life, try making an appointment at the Counseling Office at extension 2146. Counseling hours are Monday-Friday 8:30-4:30.
Leave a Reply