The document discusses stress management for college students. It explains that stress is a normal human experience and college can be a stressful time. Successfully managing stress can help students do well in college and life. Stress occurs when external demands outweigh our perceived ability to cope. The document provides tips for managing stress through problem-focused and emotion-focused coping strategies like exercise, social support, and relaxation.

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STRESS MANAGEMENT
FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS

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Trinity College Dublin
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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.

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Trinity College Dublin
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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.

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

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Trinity College Dublin
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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

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

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

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Trinity College Dublin
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Demands and Resources
 Demands or stressors
 External sources
 Internal sources
 Resources for coping

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Trinity College Dublin
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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.

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Trinity College Dublin
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COPING RESOURCES
Cognitive Strategies
Behavioural Strategies

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Trinity College Dublin
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COPING RESOURCES
Cognitive Strategies
Reframing
Challenging negative thinking
Positive self-talk

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

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Trinity College Dublin
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COPING RESOURCES
Cognitive Strategies
Smell the Roses
Keep perspective
Reduce uncertainty
Imagery/visualisation

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Trinity College Dublin
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COPING RESOURCES
 Behavioural Strategies
Physical exercise
Breathing
Relaxation
Laugh & Smile
Healthy Diet & Sleep

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Trinity College Dublin
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COPING RESOURCES
 Behavioural Strategies
Social support
Seek help
Worry Time
Time management

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

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Trinity College Dublin
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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.

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Trinity College Dublin
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RELAXATION

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Trinity College Dublin
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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.

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Trinity College Dublin
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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
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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
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Foundations for Lifelong Health
 Health
 Nutrition
 Exercise

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Trinity College Dublin
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Foundations for Lifelong Health
 Lifestyle
 Attitude

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Trinity College Dublin
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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.

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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!