Freshman art and graphic design major Molly
Anne Turner understands stress.
“Getting used to a college course load on top
of life away from home can be stressful,” Turner
said. “I have two tests, one group project, four art
projects and that doesn’t include the little home-
work- like reading 50 pages out of a textbook for
a quiz tomorrow. It’s not that it’s too much stuff
to do, it’s just the first time I have ever had this
much outside classwork.”
Freshman students are more stressed than ever
before according to a recent The New York Times
article. The stressors include parents, profes-
sors and students themselves. Financial pressure
along with the fear of failure are the main stress-
ors for young adults.
The article also states that the constant stress
and pressure on students is not going to lighten
up any time soon. However the more actively a
student engages in stress-free activities, the more
likely the student will be able to successfully
handle stressful situations.
“American culture has gotten worse as far as
putting high expectations on young adults,” said
Mary Liscinski, graduate intern for Counseling
Services. “’Success’ is defined as how many ac-
tivities you are involved in, and how busy you
are. Yes, it is important to try hard, to have goals
and to have successes, but too many young
adults strive for perfection, either from their
own expectations or from the requests of others.
There needs to be balance in life, in all stages of
life. I think balance means putting importance on
emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual health.
If you take care of yourself, that makes it easier
to accomplish your goals, in the short and long
term. Also, don’t forget to look out for others’
needs! Focusing on other people helps keep life
in perspective.”
Stress can manifest itself in numerous ways,
from symptoms like poor sleep, digestive prob-
lems, increased irritability and skin rashes to
concentration problems and increases or de-
creases in appetite.
“The big joke in my family was the fresh-
man-15 and how long it was going to be until
I gained the weight,” said Libby Harrington,
freshman art and business major. “I’m starting to
realize that the freshman-15 isn’t a result of poor
eating habits, the food in the Caf or freedom, its
a result of stress. I have witnessed so many girls
take two even three trips to Taco Bell in one night
while they study for a test or down caffeine in
order to stay awake. That stuff isn’t good for you
and it just piles on the pounds.”
While many students remember the days of
high school teachers warning them about col-
lege and how different it was going to be, only a
few daydreamed of how different the class work
would be.
“My parents always give me a hard time when
I try and talk to them about how stressed out I
am,” Turner said. “They talk about the old days
when they had a type-writer and had to actually
go to the library to look up information, etc. I
always agree that they had a harder time doing
things, but it’s obvious that we have harder stuff
to do now that its easier for us to do it.”
There are many ways to deal with the stress
of college, for both freshman and upperclassmen
students.
“[To handle stress] start by being able to take
a deep breath to relax,” Liscinski said. “That
triggers your body to slow down the anxiety-
producing chemicals. Examine your thinking…
is it mainly negative? If so, think of replacement
statements that are more realistic. For example,
‘I’ll never get this assignment right!’ can be
changed to ‘I am going to try my hardest, and
learn from any mistakes I make.’”
For some students, stress relief may actually
take the form of a job of some sort, outside of the
school pressures.
“The number one thing that always calms me
down when I feel stressed out is dancing,” Har-
rington said. “I have even found a job that al-
lows me to choreograph other dancers because
it allows me to forget about to outside world
for awhile. Dancing lets me focus on the task at
hand, and it doesn’t hurt that it helps pay for my
tuition.”
Ouachita has also started sponsoring its own
Stress and Anxiety group for students on Tues-
days at 3:30 p.m. Any student is welcome to join
anytime. The group will continue to meet as long
as students are interested. For more information,
contact Dan Jarboe, university counselor, at jar-
boed@obu.edu.
