Freshmen Friday: Stress

College is a time where you and all your friends really go separate ways and have different experiences and different encounters. No matter who we are or where we come from, we will all experience one thing, and that thing is STRESS.
For many of us, high school was a walk in the park with the occasional high school drama, which we now realize was ridiculous and we laugh about it. I don’t think I ever experienced legitimate stress over something school related until I got to college.
My very first semester in college was still not a huge challenge. My biggest challenges have come my second year. I failed my first test. That was the beginning of the stress for me. I failed my first test and didn’t know what to do. After something like that, you begin to feel like the universe is on a mission to make everything as complicated as it can be for you. Every little thing begins to feel like it is piling up on you and it won’t stop. It can take an emotional, mental and physical toll on you.
Knowing how to deal with your stress is a very important thing. Everyone deals with their stress a different way. I, personally like to do a few things when I am having a stressful time. For example, at the end of one of my most stressful weeks, I had a long phone call with my mother and was completely honest with her. I told her I had a frustrating week and things weren’t going too well and all she did was say it was going to be okay and I felt instantly better. My mom can’t come here from Dallas and help me do my homework and take my tests, but she can tell me that everything will be okay and that was good enough for me.
Another thing I like to do is go to the driving range and hit some golf balls. That is a huge stress reliever for me. Exerting a lot of force into something like hitting golf balls helps me get out a lot of stress that I had built up. Indulging in physical activity is a great way to relieve stress.
Finding the best way to relieve stress for you, personally, is key to surviving in college. Some good ways for people to manage stress levels are getting more sleep, trying to relax, just talking to someone, or even managing your time. These are all good ways to ease the load of pressure you feel like you have on you. Everyone will have this issue throughout college, it’s just a matter of finding the best way for you to deal with it.
 
Angel Cruz 


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