Stress in college is common

Courtney Valko spent her first year at Pitt trying to adjust to the academic changes that… Courtney Valko spent her first year at Pitt trying to adjust to the academic changes that happened in college, but stress didn’t seriously affect her until her second semester as a freshman.

She began to experience stress over upcoming finals and papers to the point where she noticed changes in her health. After a visit to the health clinic, she was diagnosed with shingles, which the doctors attributed to her high stress levels.

“I had been through finals first semester,” Valko said. “I guess just being a freshman in college is harder than any other year because you have to adjust and you have to learn to study.”

According to Dr. Shirley Haberman of the Health Education Office at Pitt, there is a whole host of stress-related health problems that college students can experience, including headaches, emotional problems, sleep disturbances and digestive problems.

“I think at different points in your college experience, students experience stress for different reasons,” Haberman said. “The beginning of the college experience is a susceptible time because of all the change that is going on in a new student’s life.”

A certain amount of stress is a good thing, said Haberman, but even positive stress can have negative results. She said that a student who is experiencing a lot of changes in her life is more likely to feel stressed out, a symptom that pertains to most college seniors.

“The excitement of a new job that’s waiting for you after graduation is a positive stressor, but it is a stressor nonetheless,” Haberman said.

Factors such as relationship stress, family pressures or difficult coursework can occur at any point during the college experience, causing disturbances in the health and sleep patterns of students.

Haberman said that 25 percent of college students experience stress to the point where they consider dropping out of college. She advised that students seek help before stress reaches an overwhelming level.

Stress management workshops are offered by Student Health Services where various relaxation techniques and lifestyle strategies are presented to help students cope with stress. The workshops will begin in October, and students should call the health education office to set up an appointment.

Many students who attend the workshops are worried about keeping on top of their assignments and performing well on tests, Haberman said. She said that students should limit the amount of caffeine in their diets, set up good study habits and try to get enough sleep.

“Make sure you schedule time to relax,” she added. “That’s important, too.”

Valko can relate to this concept in retrospect and has learned to manage stress by budgeting her time.

“I know I get stressed out a lot around test time,” she said. “I guess I was just trying to do my best in school and have time to hang out with my friends. I do think that I know better how to study and what to study. I think that’s helpful in reducing the stress level.”