Manage Your College Stress Better This Semester

College is stressful and demanding. There's a lot to keep up with--not to mention how difficult the work is sometimes. It's normal to experience stress about schoolwork. However, college stress can have a negative impact on your mental health if you don't manage it well. 

Manage College Stress by Changing Your Mindset

When I have a lot to get done, college stress wears on me. I tend to grit my teeth and power through it. I skip meals, miss calls, and work, work, work until I'm finished. There's so much to do that there's no time for anything else (or at least I think that way). The problem is that I burn out. I exhaust myself, and by the end of the day, I'm not even doing my best work.

Changing your mindset is the first thing to help with your school stress. Remember why you're in school: to learn. So, it's important not to become obsessed with just getting work done. I like to remind myself that in 10 years (or even a year), I'm probably not going to remember the particular assignment I'm stressed about. Instead, I'll remember what I took away from the class as a whole.

Grades don't always accurately reflect what you learn. Keep that in mind next time you feel anxiety about your academic performance.

Melt Away the College Stress: Rest

Even though it's hard for me to believe, I always work better when I take breaks along the way. Our brains aren't marathon-runners--they need time to decompress and reset. I've found that scheduling breaks is one way to ensure that I don't burn out too quickly. I like to set a timer for an hour and a half to do my schoolwork, and then I set another timer for 20 minutes to go on a walk or watch a TV show. When I do this, I am more efficient and calm.

Another key component to managing college stress is making sure you get enough sleep. After many sleep-deprived years, I have finally learned this lesson. Now, I don't let anything get in the way of my sleep--not even homework. Sleep doesn't just make me generally more positive, but it also helps me pay attention in class instead of nod off in the back of the room.

Without adequate rest, it's difficult to excel in school.

Utilize Your Resources

Most of your teachers aren't out to get you; in fact, they actually want you to succeed. If you are in a mental health crisis, please reach out to your teacher. Most, if not all, of them, will be understanding. They can give you an extension on assignments, and they even might point you to other mental health resources available at your school. I was really wary of talking to my teachers at first, but once I did, I was incredibly thankful. 

Above all, remember that you are worth more than your academic performance and your anxieties. Take these simple steps to manage your college stress, and you can have a fantastic semester.