Being a student, a student-athlete, or a professor can cause stress. Many factors are involved and it can be hard to resolve the stress that builds up, especially for students and professors during midterms and finals.

Stress is defined as any type of change that causes physical, emotional, or psychological strain. Stress is your body’s response to anything that requires attention or action, (verywellmind.com).

“Purdue has a great website that focuses on stress management: https://www.purdueglobal.edu/blog/student-life/college-students-guide-to-stress-management-infographic/,” Jenny Wagstaff, Averett University’s director of counseling services, said.

“One critical thing to manage stress is to push pause and take some deep breaths,” Wagstaff said.

This can be done through different types of grounding techniques, such as the ones that follow:

Take A Short Walk: Concentrate on your steps — you can even count them. Notice the rhythm of your footsteps and how it feels to put your foot on the ground and then lift it again.

Breathing Exercises: Slowly inhale, then exhale. If it helps, you can say or think “in” and “out” with each breath. Feel each breath filling your lungs and note how it feels to push it back out.

Move Your Body: Do a few exercises or stretches. You could try jumping jacks, jumping up and down, jumping rope, jogging in place, or stretching different muscle groups one by one. Pay attention to how your body feels with each movement and when your hands or feet touch the floor or move through the air. How does the floor feel against your feet and hands? If you jump rope, listen to the sound of the rope in the air and when it hits the ground.

5-4-3-2-1 – Working backward from 5, use your senses to list things you notice around you. For example, you might start by listing five things you hear, then four things you see, then three things you can touch from where you’re sitting, two things you can smell, and one thing you can taste.

To find out more ways to help reduces stress, or to see Wagstaff or Jessie Henderson appointments can be made through telehealth or via email [email protected].

“We are happy to work with students on stress management techniques,” Wagstaff added.