Stress

Modified: 2025-09-08 4:31 PM CDST

Anxiety Disorders Video
- Many college students are anxious during their first year. See the video above. More than likely you DO NOT have an anxiety disorder: phobias, panic attacks, or separation anxiety.
- But, if you believe you do, see the SAU Counseling Center
More Stress Now?
- Peter Stearns writing in the Chronicle of Higher Education (9/1/2022) notes:
  - College students report much more anxiety now than in the past
  - Nearly a third of college students report anxiety
    - See his Healthy Minds Study he argued:
    - College student anxiety is not new
      - Covid and social media are not the immediate causes of student anxiety
      - He notes that the following have a long history:
        
        Examination (test) anxiety
        
        Math anxiety
        
        Writing anxiety
    - He writes that along with those anxieties above came a rise in campus mental health services. Those:
      - Increased from 10% availability on campuses in 1950 to universal availability today
      - Led to increased awareness of anxiety among students and health professionals
    - He pointed to a succession of big history events that increased anxiety of all:
      - Cold War
      - Changing roles of women in society
      - HIV-AIDS
      - Nuclear War
      - Rising crime rates
    - College has become much more competitive, he notes
      - More students took SAT and ACT tests
      - Many prepared for those tests via practice tests
    - College students long term goals also changed:
      - 1968's #1 goal was-"developing a meaningful philosophy of life" (85%)
      - 2000's #1 goal was-"being very well off financially" (74%)
      - Many more now believe they will graduate with honors (GPA of 3.5 or higher)
        
        4% in late 1960s, 20% now
    - He concludes:
      - "Experts have been trying to confront student anxiety for over half a century without reversing the tide. Yet too often, journalists and even counselors assume that high levels of student anxiety are the product of recent tumult alone. Historical perspective does not in itself offer clear remedy. But it enables a realistic discussion of how remedy might be sought."
With Stearn's analysis as prologue, let's examine stress and time management more closely.
Videos:
- Ermey as psychiatrist
  - Don't worry, he does not work at the SAU Counseling Center

Ermey as Drill Instructor in Full Metal Jacket (X-rated language! Do not open if you don't wish to hear bad language)
- Marine drill instructors cause lots of stress!

Definition of stress:
- complex physiological reactions that take place when trying to adapt to demands of external events
Definition of stressor:
- events that threaten or challenge an individual (or, they produce stress)
Definition of resilience:
- ability to recover from or adjust easily to misfortune or change
Signs of Stress
- irritability
- pounding heart
- dry mouth
- impulsiveness
- urges to run, cry, and hide
- inability to concentrate
- tics
- migraines
- feelings of unreality
- loss of "spark"
- easily startled
- teeth grinding (at night)
- trouble sleeping
- frequent urination
- diarrhea
- stomach upset
- missed menstruation
- neck or back pain
- changes in food intake
- change is smoking amount
- change in alcohol use
- nightmares
- accident proneness
- hives
- Any of these may indicate that you are under stress

Caffeine and Stress

Consumer Affairs on caffeine and those younger than 55

Sources of caffeine (and I'm betting most of you are NOT coffee drinkers. True?)

Coffee and Tea Caffeine	Ounces	Caffeine (mgs)
Decaffeinated coffee or tea	8	2
Black tea, brewed	8	47
Green tea, brewed	8	30 to 50
Plain coffee, brewed	8	95
Starbucks Coffee Grande	16	330

Soft drinks and energy drinks		Caffeine (mgs)
Coca-Cola Classic	12	35
Diet Coke	12	47
Mountain Dew	12	54
Red Bull	8.3	76
Monster Energy	16	160
No Fear	16	182

Foods and other products		Caffeine (mgs)
Hershey’s chocolate milk	8	10
Hershey’s milk chocolate	1.5	10
Dannon coffee yogurt	6	30
NoDoz Maximum Strength	1 tab.	200

Exercise and Stress
- Aerobic exercise
  - Do some to reduce stress. Doing it regularly is better. Have you walked the SAU Farm Road yet?
  - Regular exercise is a good preventer of stressf
  - I like to swim and now there is no public pool in Magnolia :-(

Picture from Magnolia Banner News

Produces endorphins (e.g., "runner's high")

Chariots of Fire(1981) trailer
- Notice how happy the runners are
- Notice how you may, reluctantly, exercise and later feel better

Sleep and Stress
- Get about 8 hours/night
- Use sleep hygiene
  - Have a sleep routine
    - e.g., like a child: dinner, bath, story, bed
  - Don't take long daytime naps
  - Read or listen to relaxation tape before sleep
  - Don't exercise at night
  - Sleep in same place
  - Have a regular schedule
    - Children and pets love routine--Ed Kardas
    - My dog's routine:
      - Up from sleep at 7 am
      - Does "business" outside
      - Lies on front couch looking out front window
      - May bark at passersby
      - Moves to the boys' old room (where she slept all night)
      - Sleeps on love seat
      - Eats dry food
      - Back to front couch
      - Back to love seat
      - Has dinner, one can of dog food
      - Front porch, leashed, to wait for her mistress (my wife Julie, that is)
      - Greets Julie
      - Goes to pool to watch me swim
      - Begs for food from Julie and I
      - Takes her daily walk
      - Goes to bed 7:30 pm
Relaxation Techniques
- There are many ways to learn relaxation
- I like progressive relaxation
  - Can be done anywhere at anytime
- Relaxation techniques
Other Ways to Relieve Stress
- Learn how to reward yourself
  - What turns you on?
  - Allow yourself that thing after you complete a task
    - Watch your show AFTER
- Keep your goals in mind
  - From long term to short term (graduate, get A in a class, finish project, plan your day)
- Laugh
  - It is the best medicine
- Pray or Meditate
  - Set some private time to do so
- Get a hobby
  - Think mindless pleasure (but it still requires knowledge and practice)
    - Physical things here predominate
    - You improve over time
- Get a pet
  - Only fish in residence halls
  - There are around 35 emotional support animals (ESA) animals on campus now
  - Those require appropriate documentation and approval
  - ESA animals are only allowed on campus with appropriate documentation and approval
- Get a massage
  - Here is an announcement from the Counseling Center
    - Come enjoy the calming atmosphere of the Rest & Relaxation room! All current students and faculty members are welcome to utilize this space to decompress from the stress of everyday life. In the R&R room, you will find a variety of useful ways you can choose to relax, such as lounging on the couch or extra large bean bag chairs, enjoying a massage in the Real Relax massage chair, and coloring in one of the many coloring books.
    - A HeartMath Inner Balance device that tracks your heart rate and a Muse 2 device that helps you regulate your breathing can both be checked out at the front desk of the Counseling Center.
    - Sign up for an appointment now by contacting the Counseling Center directly at 870-235-4911.
    - Reynolds Center 211
- Learn when to stop for a time out
Getting Help for Stress
- SAU Counseling Center
The CUSS
- Renner, M. J., & Mackin, R. S. (2000). A life stress instrument for classroom use (pp. 11-12). In M. E. Ware, & D. E. Johnson (eds.), Handbook of demonstrations and activities in the teaching of psychology. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
  - Take the College Undergraduate Stress Scale
    - You will not reveal your score
    - I will ask you if you were surprised by your score.
The Social Readjustment Rating Scale (Holmes & Rahe)
- Compare it to the CUSS
- Notice how the Social Readjustment Rating Scale is focused more on adult stress
Personality and Stress
- Type A Personality
  - Time pressure
  - Aggression
  - Competitive
  - Impatient
  - High Strung
- Type B Personality
  - Lack of urgency
  - Easygoing
  - Patient
  - Relaxed
  - Calm
- Health and Personality
  - Type A more prone to heart disease (males especially) and to other stress-related diseases
- FYI, most of you are Type A (college students with long-term goals)
- Take an A/B test
  - I am VERY Type A but not as much as when I was younger

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