Cause And Negative Effects Of Stress In College Students

College is a time of extreme stress due to societal and parental pressures. College students have expectations they have to live up to in order to fulfill and satisfy the needs of both their parents and society. Stress is expressed through a variety of symptoms that can be hazardous to student’s physical and mental health. With such high expectations to do well during college, students may become sleep deprived, which impairs mental capacity, but sleep deprivation is only one of a vast array of symptoms. Stress is present in all aspects of life and there are multiple causes of stress, especially, during the college period which may present itself through many symptoms, but with stress, there are also various coping methods to help students

According to a study by the Associated Press and mtvU, “eight in 10 college students say they have sometimes or frequently experienced stress in their daily lives over the past three months,” (‘Stress in College Students”). College Students are inevitably going to be affected by stress at some point throughout their college experience; however, the cause of the stress can vary by student. Some of the causes of stress on college students can be tests, homework, home life, social life, and jobs. Many times, college students have all or most of these causes piled on top of one another; therefore, giving them extremely high levels of stress. There are many negative effects of stress on college students.

Although the stress of college students is largely present, it is just another part of college. The real epidemic here besides added pressure on female students is how students as a whole can reduce the amount of stress that is put on them by personal practices. The hardships that students are going through now will be prevalent in the future when they become very successful from all the aspects they were challenged

Fortunately for us the human brain and body have been adapting to stress and are now evolved enough to know how to cope properly. Our bodies begin handling stress as soon as it is detected with a “Flight or Fight” response (King, 2014) and determines what to do right away. However, if the stress is too much for the body to handle it may lead to psychical or emotional trauma, which can cause PTSD or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Now I am not suggesting that college will give you PTSD but, I am allowing insight to what would potentially happen if one gets too stressed out. It would lead not only to PTSD but also eating disorders or sleeping disorders. The best option for dealing with stress in college, in my opinion, is what psychologists call Emotion-focused coping. Colleges today are chock full of stressors, so in the little down time that us students (and teachers) have we must find a way to cope. For example, I personally joined the schools all woman’s choir, and I work out. But if those two things just don’t seem to be right for you that is perfectly alright because there are many other options. Dr. Richard Lazarus and Dr. Susan Folkman determined that there are two ways in which us as

Leaving High School, I thought I was prepared to go into college. I knew how difficult college was going to be. So i told myself I would do my homework the day it was assigned, I would go to the tutors if i needed help, and I would study more to succeed. But one thing I did not prepare myself for was, how to overcome stress and anxiety. According to an article, “Stress in College: Experts Provide Tips to Cope” by Megan Reed, “…30% of students reported that stress had negatively affected their academic performance within the past year, and over 85% had felt overwhelmed by everything they had to do at some point within the past year.”(National Health Assessment) This report really captivated me because 30%

The first strategy for coping with my stress is exercise. I try my best to exercise regularly and keep myself in the routine for physical relief.

Generally speaking, college requires a lot more effort from students than high school. Once you begin your college career, you will see that student’s are more motivated, professors are more demanding, and the workload is a lot more difficult. These academic standards are even more visible in graduate school. Now, although college is filled with adventurous opportunities, it can also be filled with stress. In other words, as a result of everything going on, it’s more common for college students to experience higher levels of stress related to school, work, finance, and in some cases, relationships.

College has many rewards, but it also has a whole other side that is not talked about. Stress and college seem to go together with each other. Just deciding where you want to go can be a stressful event, never mind the stress from finals or mid-terms. I am going to discuss some of the effects of stress that students have to deal with from one semester to the next.

One topic in psychology I find particularly interesting is the amount of stress that students in this generation are subjected to, specifically while in college. There are many reasons why this topic is interesting to me. The first and obvious reason is because I myself am a college student. Therefore, I have personally experienced the tremendous amount of stress that is put on students. I have also witnessed my friends and peers cope with this stress in various ways, some of which are healthy and some of which are not. I also am interested in this topic because I feel that it is universally an important topic. With the job market being so competitive, and the need for advanced degrees becoming commonplace, students are constantly focused on

Deciding to go to college is the hardest decision a student can make and the most stressful. Caused by many reasons, the stress is present whether one is in their first year of college or their last. Deciding to attend college is frightening for students; this is because it means going into the world and growing up. Along with the decision come a number of stressful responsibilities and changes that a student has to put up with. The reasons for so much stress fall into one of three categories: academic stress, which has anything to do with studying for classes, financial stress, which has to do with paying for school, and personal stress. Many students experience stress, and they have to combine their busy lives and the demands of college and still make time for themselves. We all experience stress in college getting ready for exams, completing papers, or adjusting to college life. We all know that being stressed for a long time may cause health issues. Although stress can be harmful at times, it can also be good and stimulating. Stress can also be good, because of facing new challenges helps students grow up and learn new things. Dealing with academic and personal stressors is the hardest part about college, and it will interfere with personal life and help experiment life’s options.

Like many of the questionnaires utilized for research in the articles used for this literature review, it was anonymous, and administered and collected during class. This form of data collection provided high turn in rates allowing researchers to have a wide study scale. According to Hicks, T., & Heastie, S., contrasting levels of stress and coping mechanisms were present in these students. It was noted that traditional college students experience more psychological stress than their nontraditional student counterparts. In addition, during the first year of college, the amount of stress experienced by students is the highest in comparison to stress in the remainder of the years. These results are especially important because it stresses the need for a strong health and wellness center within colleges and universities.

Successful college students adapt into a proactive way of thinking to overcome the obstacles from courses. Success is found in stress management . “ Finding ways to increase coping resources will help students decrease the stressors that life will throw your way” ( Clarke University par. 3). Students should take time to receive adequate rest, good nutrition, exercise, and even prayer or meditation to reduce stress according to Clarke University. This proactive mindset allows students to overcome obstacles in a positive manner, “ we can control how we respond to what happens to us” (Covey p. 54). Students may not be able to control how much homework a professor may give, but are able to replace “victimitis” attitudes with a “can-do-attitude”, and relieve loads of stress. College is not an easy undertaking, but by managing stress, it becomes a much more feasible

That feeling of walking back from an exam or staying up all night cramming information is well known to any student who has been through college. It leaves one feeling overwhelmed like the week will never end. The feelings are held inside while friends and roommates accuse moodiness which leads to the meltdown that is inevitable. These times are a result of a common state known as stress. Stress is a condition in which the body responds to any kind of demand or threat caused by life factors which include pressure, work, school, major changes, and lack of sleep. This factor is very common in colleges, especially freshmen and can also be seen here at Trine University. Stress can affect both physical and mental conditions in the body, such as sleep patterns, eating habits, anxiety,

Stress is evident in all our lives. It is correlated to various issues, like anxiety, depression, and back pain and neck issues. According to stress.com, eight out of 10 college students have experienced stress in the past three months. The period that college students are going through is called emerging adulthood. Emerging adulthood is the period during ages 18-25 years where students are growing up and learning the struggles of being an adult. Stress is in all aspects of our lives. In the cognitive domain, students with time management skills can decrease the amount of stress in their lives. In the emotional domain, depression and anxiety are related to life stresses, such as financial difficulties and losing family members or friends. In the social domain, workplace relationships influence the amount of stress a person can have as well as their mental well-being. In the physical domain, back and neck pain issues are related to stresses in college. Stress affects college students’ wellbeing in all aspects of their lives.

Over the years many studies have been conducted to determine what creates stress and how college students can cope with stress. Stressors in a student’s life can be created through personal, educational and social experiences. A student faces many experiences while transitioning from high school, to college, and into adulthood. These experiences include: living arrangements, personal finances, important career decisions, experiences of failure, interpersonal relationships, and personal finances. These stressors involved with daily hassles can create an unhealthy high pressure environment which makes stress for college students inevitable. During one study, researchers found that physical activity throughout a student’s life can increase one’s stress tolerance and positively cope with stressors (Bland, Melton, Bigham, & Welle, 2012).