It goes without saying that 2020 has been anything but traditional, and although the semester is winding down, stress is at an all-time high. IUPUI Health and Wellness Promotion’s annual Stress Busters Week will run from November 16 to 20, and to kick it off, HWP’s Ryan Anderson has some helpful ways to identify stress and how to respond to it.
Ways to Identify Stress
Typically, we can identify stress in one or more of the categories below. The first step to effective stress relief is having the awareness that you are actually stressed.
- Behavior
This can look like procrastinating, sleep too much or too little, isolating yourself from others, engaging in nervous habits such as nail biting, etc.
- Body
Paying attention to the way your body feels is a key component. Are you experiencing aches and pains, rapid heartbeat, loss of sex drive or nausea/dizziness?
- Emotions
How are you feeling? Agitation/inability to relax, feeling overwhelmed, moodiness and being short tempered can all be signs of stress.
- Cognition
The inability to concentrate, seeing only the negative, constant worrying or memory problems can indicate you need to slow down.
How You Can Respond
You can either address the symptoms by engaging in things like:
- Physical recreation: If you are a Campus Recreation member, take a group fitness class online or in person. You can also try guided online videos or a brisk fall walk.
- Relaxation/meditation: Apps like Mindspace can be helpful to get into a more relaxed headspace.
- Taking a break: It sounds simple, but it really can work. Try working diligently for 45 minutes and then take a 15-minute break away from what you’re working on.
- People time: A physically distanced study group or FaceTime with friends and family can help. Reaching out to your support system virtually can be a great benefit when in-person opportunities are limited.
- Watching a funny movie/video: During that 15-minute break, watch a funny video on YouTube or maybe one involving adorable puppies. Laughing is good for your stress and overall health.
Or you can address the source with things like:
- Reducing commitments: “No” is one of the most powerful words we can use to decrease our stress levels. Ask for a rain check or see if other folks can help you/take over the commitment.
- Positive self-talk: When we are stressed, it is natural for us to use negative self-talk. Positive self-talk can help to counteract that devil on your shoulder. Congratulate yourself for finishing an assignment. Remind yourself that you can do hard things.
- Getting more sleep: Seven to nine hours. The closer you can get, the better. Make a cup of calming tea, set aside electronics and get your snooze on.
- Planning ahead: Google and Outlook calendars can be our best friends. Take a few minutes each evening to look ahead to the next day and make a to-do list.
- Understanding what you can control: So many stressors are external things we cannot control. You probably cannot directly control the weather or political climate, but you can try to control how you respond to those factors and how to respond to stressors that are in your control.
Stress is a natural part of life. And a little bit of stress can even be good for you, as it’s oftentimes the motivation we need. However, when it starts to pile up, it’s easy to fall into negative, unhealthy or unproductive coping mechanisms. While these strategies may provide temporary relief, they end up only increasing stress over time.
There is no guarantee you’ll be able to cope with stress all the time, but being aware of when you are becoming stressed, choosing to take an action and then taking that action can make a world of difference.
To help combat stress for finals week, check out HWP’s Stress Busters Week activities on Division of Student Affairs calendar.