STRESS

Stress is an individual's response to change in circumstance or to a

threatening situation. It can be viewed as a personal reaction to an
external event/demand like writing an exam or to an internal state of
mind like worrying about an exam. Of interest is the fact that stress
tends to increase with the prospect of not being able to cope with
the situation at hand. For most people, stress is viewed as a
negative concept. However, stress can spur us on to achieve our best.
For example, athletes often break world records under the stress and
pressure of the Olympics. A moderate amount of stress helps to
motivate us to write a term paper or prepare for an exam, and in this
case, is positive and necessary. Therefore, a certain amount of
stress is desirable but too much is detrimental. Today's demands and
pressures guarantee that all human beings will experience stress.
Stress is simply a byproduct of life. The encouraging part of this
picture is that we can learn how to control or manage "excess"
stress. In fact, a belief in our ability to be able to handle stress
often times serves to decrease stress levels. What is a STRESSOR?
Stressors are those changes in one's life or threatening situations
referred to above. As a student, you will likely encounter a number
of situations/events which will result in stress. You are reminded
that not everyone responds to stressors in the same way because of
differences in perception (differences in the meaning given to the
situation/event by an individual). What might be stressful for one
individual may not be necessarily stressful for another. Below is a
list of some common stressors specific to student life.  Arguments
 Lower grades than expectStress is an individual's response to
change in circumstance or to a threatening situation. It can be
viewed as a personal reaction to an external event/demand like
writing an exam or to an internal state of mind like worrying about
an exam. Of interest is the fact that stress tends to increase with
the prospect of not being able to cope with the situation at hand.
For most people, stress is viewed as a negative concept. However,
stress can spur us on to achieve our best. For example, athletes
often break world records under the stress and pressure of the
Olympics. A moderate amount of stress helps to motivate us to write a
term paper or prepare for an exam, and in this case, is positive and
necessary. Therefore, a certain amount of stress is desirable but too
much is detrimental. Today's demands and pressures guarantee that all
human beings will experience stress. Stress is simply a byproduct of
life. The encouraging part of this picture is that we can learn how
to control or manage "excess" stress. In fact, a belief in our
ability to be able to handle stress often times serves to decrease
stress levels. What is a STRESSOR? Stressors are those changes in
one's life or threatening situations referred to above. As a student,
you will likely encounter a number of situations/events which will
result in stress. You are reminded that not everyone responds to
stressors in the same way because of differences in perception
(differences in the meaning given to the situation/event by an
individual). What might be stressful for one individual may not be
necessarily stressful for another. Below is a list of some common
stressors specific to student life.  Arguments  Lower grades than
expect.

 Arguments  Lower grades than expected  Change in Family Roles

 Marriage or Divorce  Change in Financial Status  New girl or
boyfriend  Change in Friends  Noise during study time  Change
in Living Conditions & Social Activities  Personal Conflicts 
Clutter/Disorganization  Pregnancy  Daily Hassles , Rigourous
academic standards  Death of a Family Member or Close Friend 
Roommate & Peer Pressure  Debt Load/Financing Education 
Selection of or Change of your Major  Different/new/developing
support system  Sexual harassment  Failing an important test,
exam, or course  Suicide of a Friend  Fear of Failure  Worry
about the future job market  Leaving Home

If some of you are returning to university after working or raising

your family, becoming a student involves a significant change for you
as you juggle the multiple roles of student, parent, marital partner,
and possibly income earner. Signs and Symptoms of Stress Stressors in
our life encourage us to either adjust to or change some aspect of
our behaviour. When we do not successfully make these adjustments or
changes we often times find ourselves experiencing a number of
unpleasant side effects or signs and symptoms. These signs and
symptoms are all indications of a level of stress that is not
healthy. Below is a list of some of the more common signs and
symptoms related to inappropriate levels of stress. They have been
categorized as being either physical, emotional, mental, spiritual,
or relational in nature. Identify any signs or symptoms that might be
occurring regularly in your life, and then determine if the
stressor(s) responsible for the side effects is something you may
want to deal with. Before embarking on some sort of plan to reduce
your level of stress, a medical checkup should first be completed
since many of the signs and symptoms identified below could be
related to a physical condition.

What is the best way to cope with

stressors?
Next are some suggestions that can help you cope with stress. Each
technique that follows has been categorized for your convenience as
being a technique or strategy that can help reduce your level of
stress by attending to eitherbodily needs, school-related demands, or
thinking which ultimately has a lot to do with how you think, feel,
and act toward a stressor in your life. You are encouraged to begin
by making a commitment to implement just a few of these strategies
initially, since making small changes first may be more desirable and
realistic than committing to significant changes all at one time.
Techniques to Help with Physical Well-Being  Relaxation techniques.
Relaxation techniques can help us gain more control over the stress
we encounter. This is because it is a technique that helps brings
about the opposite bodily changes of the stress response or can
reduce muscle tension. Refer to a book or see a counsellor at
Counselling Services for specific guidance on relaxation techniques.
 Eat regular well-balanced meals and get plenty of rest. When your
body is run down, things can look worse than they really are and your
ability to cope with them is also reduced. Limit your coffee to 3
cups per day and remember that chocolate and cola drinks also contain
caffeine.  Exercise. A physical workout is a great tension
releaser. Find something that you enjoy and will do on a regular
basis. It can be as simple as walking or demanding as racquetball.
Exercise can reduce anxiety and depression, reduce muscle tension and
temporarily distract us from our stressors. Techniques to Help with
Academic Well-Being  Learn to pace yourself. No matter how hard you
try, you cannot be in high gear all the time. Take rests while
working. Set realistic goals and then take time out to reward
yourself once you've reached them.  Realize your limits and plan
around them. Don't take on more than you can handle. If you have a
number of must-do tasks, tackle them one at a time, in the order of
their urgency. It's probably better to turn tasks away than to leave
work unfinished. Unfinished business is a major source of stress. 
Make the most of your time. Try to work as efficiently as you can in
blocks of time by utilizing a realistic time schedule. Counselling
Services' staff can help you develop more effective time management
skills.  Streamline your assignments. Break complex assignments
down into manageable components.  Plan for change. Some changes can
be predicted and by predicting change, you can reduce the shock of
being unprepared. If you are a prospective student, talk with other
students to learn about the changes they experienced. This
information may lead you to prepare ahead of time for the inevitable
changes. For example, learn a word processing computer program before
you have to type an assignment for class. Develop effective study
skills. Go to class prepared with your readings and homework
completed. Ask the professor questions either in class or after class
when you do not understand something. Get in the habit of reviewing
lecture notes immediately after the lecture to help reinforce the
learning which just took place. Also review notes and readings
weekly. By following these suggestions, you will probably be better
prepared to study for exams.  Take time out for yourself away from
your responsibilities for least a short period each day to sort out
your thoughts and feelings. How much time you need will depend on a
number of factors. However, even 15 minutes devoted to yourself can
help. Also use this time to relax.  Have fun. Plan to do something
that you enjoy on a regular basis.

Techniques to Help with Psychological Well-

Being

Identify and deal with the cause. It is important to determine what
is causing your distress. Otherwise you may only superficially deal
with your distress so that little relief is experienced. Without this
step, stress will build and continue. You may ask yourself: What has
changed? When did I start feeling distress? How are my beliefs or
thoughts contributing to how I see the stressful situation? Am I
expecting too much? Do I not believe I can handle the situation? By
identifying the cause, we can more accurately select ways of coping
such as revising our expectations, improving study techniques, or
gaining support from others.  Be aware of negative self-talk and
negative attitudes.

Thought stopping. Monitor your negative thinking and when it starts

say aloud to yourself, "STOP!" The thoughts can come back, and
probably will, but when they do, you can use the same technique to
stop them again. It will take time and practice to break the habit of
negative thinking. However, don't use the technique to stop
reasonable worries and appropriate thinking about what you need to
do.  Engage in positive self-talk. Encourage yourself with phrases
that are positive rather than negative.  Restrict worrying.  If
you find yourself engaging in catastrophic thinking (i.e. imagining
all of the terrible scenarios or possibilities) try to restrict your
worrying to specific times and places. Find a chair in a place at
home and at school that you don't particularly like to sit in. Make
at least two appointments to go to your worry chair every day and
worry for about 20 minutes. Don't do anything else in that chair.
This will help get your worrying under control.  However, to only
worry will not lead to an improved outcome. It is, therefore,
important to recognize when you are only worrying and move beyond
worrying into problem-solving. You may ask yourself what is the cause
of my worrying and is there anything that can be done to modify the
situation. It may be helpful to speak with a counsellor to help you
with this process.  Talk out your troubles. Learn to talk things
over with someone you trust. It releases pressure, makes you feel
better and sometimes can help you see a new side to your problem. If
you find yourself getting preoccupied with an emotional difficulty,
resist letting it get in your way. Counselling Services' staff are
available to listen to you. Learn to distance yourself. When you find
yourself in a heated argument, stop and ask yourself "is this
something really worth fighting for?"  Don't fight the inevitable.
Accept what you cannot change.  Humour. Laughter is a great stress-
reducer.  Stress Diary. Keeping a stress diary allows us to monitor
stress reactions and the events that precede them. This will help to
identify the stressors that trigger stress reactions. For example,
you may find that you experience a headache whenever you find
yourself running late. Eliminating the stressor (i.e., running late)
may allow you to eliminate the stress reaction (i.e., a headache). 
Alter the view. The way in which we view stressors and our ability to
handle them has a profound effect on our ability to cope. Often, it
is not the original stressor (e.g., an exam) but our reaction to it
(e.g., excessive worrying) that causes the greatest amount of stress.
Can you view the stressor in a more favourable light? Could things be
worse?

Can any good come out of dealing with

the stressor?
 Reassess. Underestimating our ability to cope (e.g., negating
previous successes, good study habits or intelligence) or
overestimating our ability (e.g., I can learn in a few nights what
most students take an entire semester to learn) can also contribute
to stress. When Do I Seek Assistance? We sometimes underestimate the
impact of stressors in our life. As human beings, we can handle a lot
without falling apart. However, it may be time to consider seeking
assistance if any of the signs or symptoms of stress identified in
this handout are occurring on a regular basis. You may first want to
try talking through your difficulties by sitting down with a friend,
physician, parents, or minister: This often times can help reduce
your level of stress to an appropriate level. However, if this option
fails to bring about the necessary relief, you may want to implement
the appropriate strategies identified in the previous section. If you
need assistance with any of these strategies or simply want to know
more about stress, any of our friendly staff members located at
Counselling Services would be more than willing to help.