Stressed Out?

Almost everyone feels stressed out at times.  A little stress is a good thing, it keeps you going, it keeps you motivated and moving ahead toward your goal.  However, too much stress can be bad.  But that too is not the end of the world if you learn to manage stress... instead of letting stress take over your life.


Some basic tips:
1. Be Organized:
Very simple, very basic, but it is the foundation to how you manage your life & hence your stress.  Organize everything: your time, your work, your play, your courses, your study, and down to the small seemingly unimportant things like your room, clothes, laundry &  meals.  Being organized will help cut down on wasted time.  You won't need to look for misplaced notes or books.  Being organized will cut down on chaos that adds to stress.


2. Care for Self:
You are a composite of your mental, emotional, physical and spiritual self.  You need to care for ALL of you to be healthy.  A healthy self is stronger and can fight any negativity in life without freaking out.  Eat right & eat regular meals.  Drink plenty of water.Get some physical exercise daily.  Sleep 6 - 7 hours at night.  Learn to relax and unwind.  Relaxation exercises are very helpful.


3. Maintain Balance:
Extremes are harmful, be it all fun and no play, or all play and no fun... either extreme will have negative consequences.  In a 24 hour day... you have 8 hours to study, 8 hrs to have fun and do your personal chores & that still leaves you 8 hrs to sleep.  So there is plenty of time in a day to study & have fun if you learn to manage time. 


4. Manage Time:
Get into the habit of making daily, weekly calendars.  To-do lists are very useful and a life-saver.  Make a calendar for the entire semester.  Block out study time, class times, fun times, sleep time... and you will be amazed to see how much time you have on hand.  Use it judiciously.


5. Attitude:
Your attitude toward yourself, your life, your world is the most basic building block of your life.  If you have a negative attitude you will feel bad and you will make bad choices.  If you have a positive/realistic attitude you will feel good and will make good choices.  In the 25+ years that I have been counseling I have never come across ANYONE who had a negative attitude but felt good, happy or satisfied with their life.  How you THINK is what you are!!!


These tips should help you on the way to success... not just in college but your entire life.


If you need help schedule an appointment with me.  ;-)
(for my LUMS students)