stress management

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STRESS MANAGEMENT
FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS

2. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 2
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO LEARN
ABOUT STRESS?
 Stress is a normal, universal human experience.
 Attendance at college has been recognised as one
of the most stressful times in one’s life.
 Successfully completing one’s college degree, and
enjoying one’s college experience, requires
flexibility, adaptation, and persistence.
 Learning to effectively manage stress can increase
one’s chances of doing well in college and in later
life as well.

3. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 3
STRESS results when we perceive an
imbalance between the demands placed on us
in a given situation, and our resources for
meeting those demands.
This involves 3 key components:
• The situation and its demands.
• Our subjective appraisal of the situation.
• Our perceived resources for meeting the
demands.

4. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 4
Low Stress
Boredom
High Stress
Anxiousness
Unhappiness
Optimum Stress
Area of Optimum
Performance
Figure 1.: The relationship between stress and performance

5. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 5
Physical Signs of Stress
 Racing heart
 Cold, sweaty hands
 Headaches
 Shallow/erratic breath
 Nausea, upset tummy
 Bowel problems
 Shoulder/back pains
 Rushing around
 Working longer hours
 Fatigue
 Sleep disturbances
 Weight losses
 Changes in appetite,
alcohol consumption

6. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 6
Cognitive Signs of Stress
 Forgetting things
 Difficulty concentrating
 Worrying about things
 Difficulty processing information
 Negative self-statements

7. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 7
Emotional Signs of Stress
 Increased irritability or anger
 Anxiety or feelings of panic
 Fearfulness
 Tearfulness
 Increased interpersonal conflicts
 Easily frustrated

8. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 8
Demands and Resources
 Demands or stressors
 External sources
 Internal sources
 Resources for coping

9. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 9
DIFFERENT SITUATIONS CALL FOR
DIFFERENT KINDS OF COPING.
 PROBLEM-FOCUSED COPING is aimed at
changing a situation or its accompanying demands
and is most appropriate when you have some
control over a situation.
 EMOTION-FOCUSED COPING is aimed at
dealing with the emotions caused by a
situation and its demands and is more
appropriate when you have little or no
control over a situation.

10. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 10
COPING RESOURCES
Cognitive Strategies
Behavioural Strategies

11. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 11
COPING RESOURCES
Cognitive Strategies
Reframing
Challenging negative thinking
Positive self-talk

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Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 12
COPING RESOURCES
Cognitive Strategies
Count to ten
Cost-benefit analysis
See the humour

13. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 13
COPING RESOURCES
Cognitive Strategies
Smell the Roses
Keep perspective
Reduce uncertainty
Imagery/visualisation

14. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 14
COPING RESOURCES
 Behavioural Strategies
Physical exercise
Breathing
Relaxation
Laugh & Smile
Healthy Diet & Sleep

15. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 15
COPING RESOURCES
 Behavioural Strategies
Social support
Seek help
Worry Time
Time management

16. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 16
Time Management Principles
 Clarify your priorities.
 Evaluate how you spend your time.
 Set goals.
 Develop an action plan.
 Combat procrastination.
 Organise your time.

17. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 17
Time Management Strategies
 Prioritise
 Specificity
 Small bite-size pieces
 Use all available time
 Schedule
 Say no – and mean it
 Use rewards

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Many situations you will face as college
students and later, as professionals, are best
coped with by a combination of both problem-
and emotion-focused coping
**Remember, flexibility, adaptation,
and persistence will help ensure your
success.

19. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 19
RELAXATION

20. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 20
PERFORMANCE UNDER STRESS
Most people find performances stressful.
However, they need not cause distress. The
following tips for managing the stress
experienced as a result of performance
situations can help you achieve your goals
without compromising your health.

21. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 21
PERFORMANCE UNDER STRESS
1. Focus on the process, not the outcome.
2. Be aware of the stress/performance curve
and your own optimal level of stress.
3. Learn and practice coping skills.
4. Reframe evaluative situations.

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Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 22
PERFORMANCE UNDER STRESS
5. Keep and use your sense of humour.
6. Maintain your perspective.
7. Remember that mistakes are part of learning.
8. Separate your self-worth from your
performance.

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Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 23
Foundations for Lifelong Health
 Health
 Nutrition
 Exercise

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Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 24
Foundations for Lifelong Health
 Lifestyle
 Attitude

25. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 25
Survival tips for students:
 Spend time developing and nurturing
relationships.
 Strive to maintain some balance in
your life.
 Aim to keep your perspective.
 Develop tolerance for ambiguity.
 Cultivate optimism.

26. Gensip
Trinity College Dublin
Stress Management 26
Survival tips for students:
 Learn to work with others.
 Learn to break assignments down into
manageable tasks, and when ethical, share
them.
 Remember that you are at the beginning of
a sharp learning curve.
 Lastly, HAVE SOME FUN!