Dealing With Stressors

It’s November, and Thanksgiving is here and Christmas/Chanukah is just around the corner.  It’s a busy time of the year while completing your degree and dealing with stressors.  Clay listed the Top 15 grad school stressors: here are seven stressors by the percentage of students experiencing them.  (One thing is see immediately is that you are not alone!)

 Manning, Curtis, & McMillen (1999) in their book Stress cite literature and activities to do to combat stress:

• Three good workouts per week (warm-up, stretch, the workout, cool-down, stretch).
• Sleep well (6-1/2 to 8-1/2 hrs per night).
• Meditation (sit in comfortable quiet place, close eyes and be still, breathe deeply, regularly, and slowly).
• Relax (look at Benson’s The Relaxation Response article).
• Eat 21 nutritious meals per week (look at the food guide pyramid).
• Get a massage
• Breathing (full, deep breathes several times a day).

 

I would add a few more, such as counseling if needed, social support /church/ community, time in nature, improve self-efficacy, have a strong purpose in life, and humor.   Here’s a poem:

 

TAKE TIME

Take time to think…

it is the source of power

Take time to play…

it is the secret of perpetual youth

Take time to be read…

it is the basis of knowledge.

Take time to be friendly…

it is the road to happiness.

Take time to laugh…

it is the music of the soul.

Take time to give…

it is too short a day to be selfish.

Take time to work…

it is the price of success.

 

I hope this helps and I wish you all a wonderful, peaceful Thanksgiving.

 

Best regards,

Statistics Solutions Team