Effects That Stress Has On Students

 Effects That Stress Has On Students

Christina Banh

What Is Stress?

We have all felt stressed at some point in our life. It is not a feeling that anyone wants to have. But what is stress? Stress is our body's response to what is challenging or having pressure in our life. Examples of stress could be being laid off from work, time crunch, anxiety, relationship problems, and plenty of others that we all have experienced before. Stress can also take a toll on our physical, mental, and emotional health. Students especially feel stress when it comes to school work, having a job while going to school, studying for exams, and many more.

Causes of Stress for Students

Students could be stressed for numerous reasons with these highlighted to be the most common causes of stress for these individuals:

• Too much homework

• Time management

• Participation

• Exams

• Studying

• Conflicting work schedule

• Financial issues

• Pressure from parents

According to Anjali Rana, Renu Gulati, and Veenu Wadhwa, in the article, "Stress among students: An emerging issue," there are three types of stressors, and being a student is considered to be an enduring life strain. Meaning, that there are pressures that are associated with the performance of roles. The causes of stress for students are primarily academic-related, making it understandable due to the heavy emphasis on school-related success in the majority of households. Students have the role of going to school and then finding a job that relates back to what they are studying for, which can be stressful because they do not know whether or not they are able to land a job in their field of study. Test-taking/exam testing is stressful to students as well because it forces students to perform under pressure and the test indicates how well the student understands the material. These are common causes of stress for students... and with causes comes its effects.

 

Effects of Stress on Students

Stress can be harmful to students because it can take a toll on the students' mental health, physical health, and sleep – to name a few. More specific reasons that stress has on students are as listed:

• Anxiety
• Depression
• Increase in alcohol consumption
• Smoking
• Decrease in sleep quality
• Decrease in number of hours of sleep needed
• Weight gain
• Problems with bowel movement
• Exhaustion
• Poor grades
• Attention span is lower

According to the article, "The impact of stress on students in secondary school and higher education," written by Michaela C. Pascoe, Sarah E. Hetrick, and Alexandra G. Parker, reports how stress levels are higher in students and what effects that stress has on them. The article states, "The prevalence of anxiety is as high as 35% in tertiary students and the prevalence of depression is 30%," (Pascoe, Hetrick, and Parker). When students have anxiety or depression, it can be seen in their incomplete school work, receiving poor exam scores, and other outcomes that stress does to a student. Studies have shown that students who do not have enough sleep due to academic-related stress can not or have difficulty paying attention in class which also impacts the students' well-being. Students will also turn over to substance use to help them fall asleep. Stress can put students at risk trying to prevent any health problems they may face in the future. This can increase a person's appetite which then results in weight gain and potentially having other health concerns. The effects that stress has on a student could be detrimental to their mental, physical, and emotional health.

 

Personal Thoughts

This social issue of stress is important to me because I myself (a full-time student) experience stress nearly every day. My own experience with developing stress stems from many different aspects, specifically pressure from parents who underwent the turmoil of immigration — focusing now on providing a successful future for myself. However, not only pressure from my parents but also participation is another main cause of stress. Participation can be difficult for me because I do not want to provide the wrong answer during class; if I do give out the wrong answer, knowing there are eyes towards me makes me feel more stressed and anxious. I want to let others know that it is okay to be stressed because that is something that we can control. If it means taking it easy and doing one thing at a time, that is completely okay. Taking a walk, having a healthy snack, drinking water, and breaking up tasks into different days or times are some of a few ways that I manage stress. I have friends who manage their stress by going out for a run, baking cookies, or even taking a small nap. I can not completely say that how I manage stress is going to be the same for everyone else because everyone copes with stress in their own ways. Stress is inevitable, but we can find ways that we can minimize stress so that we can continue to do life our way.

Resources

Pascoe, Michaela C., et al. “The Impact of Stress on Students in Secondary School and Higher Education.” International Journal of Adolescence and Youth, vol. 25, no. 1, 2019, pp. 104–112., https://doi.org/10.1080/02673843.2019.1596823.

Rana, Anjali, Renu Gulati, & Veenu Wadhwa. "Stress among students: An emerging                         issue." Integrated Journal of Social Sciences [Online], 6.2 (2019): 44-48. Web. 11 Apr.             2022