The Daily Gamecock

Recognizing, combating stress during exam week

<p>As finals week approaches, students take steps to ensure their stress levels stay low.</p>
As finals week approaches, students take steps to ensure their stress levels stay low.

The life of a college student typically consists of hectic schedules, stacks of assignments and the occasional cup of coffee to keep it all running smoothly. During final exam week, all of this is put on overdrive.

Stress is an ongoing problem on college campuses. In 2013, American College Health Association (ACHA) survey found that 49.6 percent of college students reported they felt "overwhelmed" by their responsibilities in the previous two weeks. Also, nearly half of college students said their academics were "very difficult to handle."

While stress can come in manageable waves, continual stress can lead to harmful symptoms, such as agitation, headaches and soreness, trouble sleeping and poor eating habits. Greater stress can lead to anxiety and depression. According to the ACHA survey, 12.4 percent of college students reported being diagnosed or treated for anxiety in the past 12 months, and 10.7 percent reported depression.

First-year biochemistry student Zach Walsh is approaching his first exam week in college, with four exams total. He said the most stressful part is the pressure to do well.

Second-year business student Emoni Coney, who is facing five exams next week, has several recommendations on how to study effectively. For herself, she prefers to rewrite notes to help her remember them and to find a quiet place on her own to concentrate. Her best advice is to find a system that works for each person.

"Know what works best for you when it comes to studying," Coney said. "And then if you find that you don't know what works best for you, try out some things ... Definitely give yourself enough time to figure out how to study as well as to study."

For many college students, pressure is not limited to academic expectations. Other sources of stress include money and extracurricular and social activities, as well as, especially for freshmen, the many changes that accompany college life.

The most recommended way of dealing with stress is effective time management. Other methods include exercising, getting enough sleep and taking breaks between different activities.

Second-year nursing student Rachel Cooper recommends staying organized and finding a good place to study as good ways to be successful during exams.

"I make sure I go the gym," she said. "It clears my head and it's a good way to stop looking at homework for a second ... It's definitely hard, but ... [try] to keep balanced and stay organized."

The university has many resources available to help students. The Student Success Center contains tutoring services, and Campus Wellness, a branch of Student Health Services, provides programs and workshops to help mental and physical health.

Student Health Services also hosts regular events to help relieve students' stress, such as free yoga at Green Quad and Keep Calm and Pet a Puppy. Students also receive 10 free counseling sessions and can make an appointment with a dietitian if they want to improve their eating habits.

Cooper emphasized that looking forward to breaks after exam week helps her feel less overwhelmed.

"Just remind yourself that in five days it'll be over," she said. "So as long as you can focus for those five days, then you'll be home and free from everything."


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