Common College Stressors and How Mental Health Therapy Can Help Manage Your Anxiety
While it’s not uncommon to hear people talk about college as the best years of their lives, the reality is that college can be an incredibly stressful time for young adults. Because of the many positive things we hear about others’ college experiences, college students may experience surprise at the actual number of stressors involved in college life. Below you’ll find a list of common college stressors faced by students and ways that mental health therapy can help.
Common College Stressors
Managing Your Own Schedule
For some young adults, college is the first time that you’re having to manage your own schedule. While living at home in high school, your day may have been dictated by regular school hours, after-school activities, and whatever your parents put on your agenda. In college, it’s now your responsibility to choose your classes, schedule, and study time. The people and structures you previously relied on to create a daily routine are no longer there.
Learning Time Management
In addition to managing your own schedule, you’re now responsible for managing your own time. Students in today’s world are often juggling academics, work, and a social life. Parents are no longer around to check in to make sure that you’re studying or staying on top of your tasks. Learning to manage your time on your own without the oversight of your parents or teachers can be a learning curve for some.
Living Away From Home
For many college students, going away to college is the first time that they’ll be away from home for an extended period of time. New college students may deal with homesickness and miss having quality time with their friends from back home. College students who are having difficulty adjusting to their new university may also struggle if they see that their old friends are becoming more distant as they get more involved in their own college experience.
Dealing with Roommates or Housemates
For students who have grown up with their own room and space, having to live with a roommate can be a real challenge. Getting paired with roommates or housemates who are very different from you in terms of noise, sleep patterns, or cleanliness is not a fun time. Living with roommates or housemates provides opportunities to have important conversations, although this is not always an easy or comfortable task.
Academic Stress
Academic stress, especially while navigating a job on the side, is prevalent among college students. You’ve got deadlines for assignments, mid-terms, finals, and you’ve got to hold yourself accountable to studying and getting this work done. Many students struggle with time management, low motivation, and procrastination which can contribute to this academic pressure.
Financial Struggles
Today’s college students are often working while also taking classes due to financial need. College students are often concerned about their ability to get financial aid, pay for their classes, and have funds for other bills and social activities. As a college student, you may be managing your money for the first time, and with that come some learning curves.
Decisions about Dating Relationships, Drugs, and Alcohol Use
Now that you’re away from home, you may be finding that you’re getting involved with new crowds of people and you’re having opportunities to enter into new dating opportunities. College is a time when many are learning to navigate new dating relationships or even casual romantic interactions. On top of that, there may be new social pressures or expectations about your drug or alcohol use. Figuring out where you stand on certain behaviors is important, so you can make decisions that are in alignment with your beliefs and values. Of course, you also want to minimize the unwanted negative consequences that come with certain decisions.
Mental Health Counseling Can Help Manage These Common College Stressors
By now, you can see just how many stressors college students face. After all, you’re in this incredibly important developmental stage in your life where there are so many things happening! You’re presented with new opportunities for independence, and because of that desire for independence, college students don’t always want to turn to their family members for guidance. This is where counselors, social workers, and mental health therapists can help!
When you sign up for counseling, you have the opportunity to get the support and guidance you need to make important decisions. You’ll get outside feedback from someone who can be objective and who will be looking out for your best interest. When you work with a counselor, you’ll identify the goals that you want to work on.
As a college student, you might be looking for support, a place to vent, or a place to get feedback and coping skills. Some college students are looking to improve self-esteem, peer relationships, communication skills, or time management. These are all goals that can be worked on in counseling. Others might look to counseling to work through stress, depression, anxiety, or difficult emotions or experiences.
The Good News About College Students & Mental Health Services
While some older generations may still hold onto stigma related to mental health and mental health treatment, many college-aged students have a more open attitude and understanding of mental health. Many college students understand that working on yourself and your mental health is just as important as taking care of your physical health. At LifeSpring, we’re so glad to see this shift, because it means that people are more open to seeking the professional help they need.
If you’re a college student who is considering counseling services, good for you! We’re so excited that you’re paying attention to how you’re feeling and are researching things that you can do to feel better. We have some information below in case we can help!
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Counseling for College Students
Counseling for International Students and Workers
Managing Your Mental Health and Taking Care of Yourself as a College Student
Ways to Improve Your Time Management Skills to Reduce Stress
Organization Strategies for College Students to Help Time Management
Stress: Effects on Your Personal Life, Mental Wellbeing, and Physical Health
How to Effectively Prepare For Final Exams as a Stressed College Student
Search Our Other Blogs!
Interested in Counseling for Anxiety and Motivation?
If you’re a Marylander who knows that counseling is the direction you need to take, the therapists at LifeSpring Counseling Services are here to help. We offer online counseling services for mindfulness, depression, anxiety, trauma, and grief and loss. We also offer Brainspotting as a specialized service, and Brainspotting can be done online, too!
Here’s how you can get started! Online counseling for anxiety and motivation aren’t the only services offered at our Maryland office
The counselors and social workers at our Maryland office also offer counseling services for trauma, grief and loss, boundary setting, communication skills, and difficult life transitions. We also offer specialized counseling services including Brainspotting and spiritually-integrated counseling. Because we are located next to several local universities, we also work with college students and international students.
Written By: Melissa Wesner, LCPC
Photos: Tony Schnagl, Zen Chung, SHVETS Production, cottonbro, & Katerina Holmes
Date of Download: 7/23/2021
