Stress often has a bad reputation and is linked to students in one large way: college.  It is a stressful time in your life in which you are trying to balance your grades, extracurricular activities, social life, and maybe even a job. Trying to balance all of these things often makes tension feel like a constant. When present, it impacts every part of your life, and it can be difficult to believe you have your life together as a result of this stress.  Then, you start to stress about stressing too much, and you fall down the big stress hole. With it having such a prominent role in your daily life, the question must be asked: how bad really is it?

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It’s okay to feel some stress. In fact, it can actually be a good thing when you have a positive mindset.  People talk a lot about mindfulness and finding your center to reducing stress and anxiety. But stress can have a positive impact on your life as well as school work. It can actually energize you and motivate you to work hard and overcome the challenges you are facing.

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However, for it to work positively, how you view your stress matters. If you think of it negatively and as something that it is terrible for you, it will become that. If you can look at it from the perspective that this stress can propel you, it will become that also. Learning how to work within the stress and deal with it effectively and efficiently is key.

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Kelly McGonigal, a psychologist at Stanford, says, “Stress isn’t always harmful – once you appreciate that going through stress makes you better at it, it can be easier to face each new challenge.”

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Stress comes with a lot of negative effects because of the way a lot of people choose to deal with it. Often in college, you put off assignments or studying for a test until you are so stressed you cannot even concentrate. Then bad grades are given, and that stress is dealt with in kind of destructive ways like drinking and partying. If you try to avoid stress and look at it in a negative light, the more likely you are to use coping mechanisms that are less helpful in the long run.

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There are ways to approach stress that can help instead of harm. McGonigal goes on to say that the three best ways to approach stress are: “1) to view your body's stress response as helpful, not debilitating – for example, to view stress as energy you can use; 2) to view yourself as able to handle, and even learn and grow from, the stress in your life; and 3) to view stress as something that everyone deals with, and not something that proves how uniquely screwed up you or your life is.” It is understood that these things are easier said than done. However, keeping them tucked into the back of your mind might eventually help you cope in some way – really, it just goes back to mindfulness of yourself.

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With all this being said, stress can be hard to deal with, and this is not meant to make anyone think that they should not be stressed, or they are not handling it correctly. Often times college is hard, life is hard, and it can be difficult to rearrange your mindset.

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Stress on top of possible depression and anxiety can be especially challenging. Everyone is different, and you should figure out how you cope best with being stressed. If your stress crosses over the line and becomes unbearable, it’s okay to seek help. Scheduling an appointment with Behrend’s personal counseling office could be the first step in this process. But all in all, it is helpful to remember that stress is something everyone feels, and everyone has the power to harness that energy into a positive outcome.