ANXIETY IN THE LIFE OF A STUDENT

 

By OMODELE, Goodness

Source: mindlifehypnotherapy

As students, we face anxiety when we think we cannot achieve our academic or non-academic purposes; however, sometimes anxiety can encourage us to think more critically about how to achieve our goals. We cope with anxiety in different ways, and some may struggle. This probably causes many symptoms that affect mental health. Therefore, it is of high necessity that we alleviate anxiety to keep our mental health while in school.

A student's mental health plays a very important role in his/her success and persistence at their institution; When the student can manage their anxiety, he/she feels less pressure. However, if the students remain anxious, he/she may not follow through with their academic studies. Also, anxiety could pose great damage to their physical and psychological states and persist after graduation, negatively affecting their capacity to work in the future. Therefore, it is of high necessity that we alleviate the anxiety to keep our mental health while we progress in school.

Different factors are responsible for the anxiety a student feels and they include:

The curriculum difficulty: A difficult curriculum is one major cause of anxiety in the life of a university student. In higher institutions, some students find it difficult to understand the curriculum, and they struggle to answer questions in class, do assignments, and write reports. Some students also find it hard to ask lecturers or their coursemates for help, as a result, they become anxious about being unable to meet the course requirements. 

Difficult tests and exams: During tests and exams, some, if not all students, get anxious because they are unprepared or rather, feel unprepared. Apart from the fact that some students may not understand the questions asked, the time allotted to answer the questions may not be enough, hence making the students anxious about failing.

Online tests and exams cause anxiety in students due to poor internet connection and other unforeseen technical problems.

Financial crisis: Financial problems serve as a source of anxiety among students, especially those responsible for their feeding or school fees. This financial crisis or instability causes many students to be distressed and lose focus on their studies.

Illness: Students who suffer from illnesses such as asthma, sickle cell anaemia, diabetes, cancer, heart problems or other disabilities find it quite challenging to manage the diseases and keep up with school work. This may negatively affect their academic level and as a result, cause anxiety.

Other factors such as discrimination, family responsibilities, employment, accommodation and so on also cause anxiety among students.

Symptoms of anxiety are grouped into cognitive, physical and emotional symptoms:

▪Physical symptoms include breathing problems, fatigue, headache, stomachache, joints and muscle pains. 

▪Cognitive symptoms of anxiety some students experience are insomnia, inability to think and make right decisions, sadness, fear and panic.

▪The emotional symptoms of anxiety are depression, nervousness, loneliness, and anger. 

Alleviating anxiety

While most people need psychotherapy or medications to get anxiety under control, the following lifestyle changes also can make a difference:

Staying physically active: This is developing a routine so that you're physically active most days of the week. Exercise is a powerful stress reducer that helps improve your mood and helps you stay healthy. Examples of exercises to try are:

Aerobic exercises, such as biking, walking, hiking, or swimming.

Weight-bearing exercises, such as squats, weightlifting, and push-ups.

Avoid alcohol and recreational drugs. These substances can cause or worsen anxiety

.Journal: Journaling is a great way to get anxious thoughts out and keep track of them over time. There are many ways to journal, and no way is right or wrong. Here are some ideas to get started:

Write about your thoughts, behaviours, and feelings each day.

Write about your activities.

Do a brain dump.

Follow a prompt.

●Socialize: Anxiety can make it tempting to isolate, especially when symptoms are at their worst. Staying in touch with friends and loved ones serves as a protective factor against anxiety. 

●Diet: Diet can have a significant impact on anxiety. Generally speaking, unhealthy diets that include a lot of processed foods can cause or worsen anxiety symptoms. Healthy diets that are associated with lower levels of anxiety include Vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and minimally processed foods, and they do not include a lot of sugar or refined grains.

Anxiety often causes worrying thoughts and distressing images that feel intrusive and uncontrollable. One way to stop negative thought patterns is to catch them as they are happening and replace them with positive thoughts ideas or images. These positive images don't need to be related to the worrying situation; any positive image can reduce anxiety.

You can also try questioning the validity of your thoughts. As you notice yourself thinking something unkind or untrue, stop and reframe your thoughts toward something more lovely and helpful.