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Stress And College Students

There are many ways that stress and college students will be connected at some point.

In order to effectively manage stress, one has to understand that stress is a reaction to a stressor. The people that have learned the knowledge and skills they need to effectively handle their reactions to a stressor typically don’t have problems with chronic stress.

Managing stress is about effectively adaptation.

Learning the information and skills need to effectively adapt to the transition between leaving home to go to college are important.

What is the stress and college students?

I have found that the list of stressors can be quite long because you have to first appreciate the stressors of leaving home. Most students are leaving the security of:
  • Home
  • Friends
  • A familiar school
  • Known responsibilities and expectations
To embark upon their college career with all the stressors of:
  • New responsibilities, rules and expectations
  • New independence
  • New social situations
  • New friends
  • New priorities
This time of transition can be a real challenge. At least initially.

What most people don’t understand about stress is that it is primarily triggered by threats of uncertainty (fears and worries). This transition time into college is wrought with uncertainties.

Then, there are even more stressors.

stress and college students balancing act

Given enough time, each college student will adapt into new routines. This will help in managing stress. However, there will be additional stressors that will take over that present more opportunities for unmanaged stress to become chronic stress :

Balancing the demands of college
Competition for grades
Financial problems
Social events and pressures
Pressure of the need to perform
Meeting the difficulty of the homework

It’s not an easy road. And, as I reflect on my college days they were some of the most exciting and interesting times of my life!




5 top signs and symptoms of stress

Each person reacts differently to a stressor. It is important for students to become aware of what activates their stress response.

When you can become aware of your reactions, you can then become choiceful about whether your reaction is promoting stress, or if it is effective in managing stress.

Here are the 5 top ways for you to notice if your stress is becoming chronic:

Body
Chronic headaches
Chronic back pain
Chronic muscle tension
Stress stomach problems
Sleep insomnia


Emotions
Symptoms of anxiety
Symptoms of depression
Panic attacks
Moody
Feel lonely


Spiritual (behaviors and relationships)
Feel angry more of the time
Want to pick fights
Short fuse
Treat others disrespectfully
Increased use of alcohol or drugs to cope


Thoughts
Are constantly worrying?
Do you feel afraid of “something”?
Do you think of the worst case scenarios?
Have an increased need to be “right”?
Thoughts of hopelessness?


There are some practical things to do

stress and college students balance

Even though stress and college students more often than not goes hand in hand, there are some practical stress relaxation techniques you can do to reduce stress.

For college students, these would be my recommendations:
  1. Let yourself become aware of what stress feels like in your body. If you can first feel either the physical manifestation (muscle tension), or the emotion (anxiety), then those are your quickest alert system that you need to take action.


  2. Keep your living space and all your schoolwork organized. Clutter and disorganization often increase stress.


  3. Talk to someone you trust about your experiences. It’s important to speak words out loud about how you are dealing with all the pressures you face.


  4. Find a healthy balance between work and play. Laughing and humor are very good stress reducers.


  5. Find the stress relaxation techniques that work best for you and that won’t take a lot of time to do. Incorporating frequent healthy deep breathing is my favorite technique, and the one that is the most effective for me.
There is always hope. And, I am here to provide you with the additional information and skills to help you along.

Enjoy this special time in your life.







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Stress Tip Of The Day!

Throughout each day, the primary cause of stress is because of threats of uncertainty.

It is thoughts of fear and worry that are triggering the stress response.

Staying focused on maintaining a positive attitude is an important stress technique.



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“Ms. Churchill is the unique health care worker everyone hopes to encounter, but rarely does. She has an extraordinary gift that allows her to do much more than diagnose and treat.”
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K., age 45, is a long term chronically PTSD disabled patient. She has had daily headaches for 20 years. Two weeks ago she reported that she had had 4 days of pain free time, and was having the exceedingly odd sensation of "smiling all the time". She and Cathi have made extraordinary fast progress together.
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I referred C.L., age mid-forties, to see Cathi after a life of suffering the post traumatic stress disorder of parental sexual abuse over many years of her childhood, with major dysfunctions of alcohol and drug abuse, and with the disabling symptoms of migraine that have for more than twenty years become chronic.

She has lived with daily headaches that have not responded to any of the several drugs which have benefited many such suffering patients. She has needed chronic opiate treatment of her chronic pain syndrome.

In the few weeks that Cathi has worked with her, C.L. has begun to experience days without pain, periods of happiness, and a reduction in her opiate dosage requirements that represent a breakthrough in her stalled-out life as a single mom raising a teen-age daughter with only social security income resources.
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“I first met Cathi Churchill eight years ago when she effectively helped my work unit through the stress of a hospital-wide layoff. I was impressed with her clear-minded approach and willingness to listen.”
Andy R.




N., age 60, is a hard driving attorney twenty year patient of mine who hit the wall with chronic fatigue four years ago, and began to realize she had to learn to rest. She recovered enough to return to her workaholic lifestyle when she was stopped by a herniated cervical disc and resumption of her chronic colitis.

Working with Cathi, she is discovering "the way she does life" and learning to make choices about it. She came in last week, having "danced until dawn". She is learning to dialogue with her body in effective ways.
Dr. Cole




“I stumbled upon Cathi after my recent heart attack that was brought on by stress. I was scared of having another one, and didn’t know what to do. I had lost hope. Working with her has changed my life. I’m so grateful."
Debbie – Canada




M.S., a woman in her late forties with progressively more and more disabling rheumatoid arthritis since childhood, whose most recent problems have arisen over the last two to three years as complications of immunosuppressive therapy for her disease. The complications have been associated with the severely disabling chronic pain of recurrent herpes neuralgia for more than three years, and for the past 15 months, recurrent osteomyelitis in her right lower mandible.

The second, more alarming (even life-threatening) problem has caused months of diagnostic and therapy confusion among her many consultants, three successive resections of the bone over the last six to eight months, and the still ongoing threat of more relapses of the smoldering bone infection and chronic pain only made bearable by chronic, massive doses of opiates.

In the few months since M. began to work with Cathi with several modalities: stress management, therapeutic touch, guided imaging, and others, her life has become more livable, as she has become able to bear the pain and the discouragement of unresolved disease.

She has relied on many of the methods for maintaining hope and getting through overwhelming discouragement by using the inner resources she has learned with Cathi.

My hope as her primary physician, is that Cathi and M. will be able to continue to work together to maintain that inner strength and hope as she faces yet more months of pain, and further repeated surgery.

Thank you for the healing guidance you've been able to give her thus far.
Dr. Racer




“I sought out the help of Cathi during my divorce, and found her to be an insightful and compassionate coach. Her ability to see deep into the heart of an emotionally stressful problem is, I believe, unique and I would highly recommend her service to anyone.”
P.R. – Brooklyn Center




S., age 48, is a Laotian patient of mine with 15 years of chronic abdominal pain. She has had an extensive medical worked up, and nothing ever worked. Cathi saw her over several months.

S. has improved! Cathi established a trusting relationship with her, and helped her to effectively break through her wall of silence and grief about her son's mental illness, and taught her how to "change her thinking".

S. now comes in smiling, notes some unusual continued symptoms, but no longer has chronic abdominal disabling pain.
Dr. Cole




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