What are you grateful for?

When our minds start to wander to the worst-case scenarios, it can feel impossible to regain control. Try listing a few things that you are grateful for to help reign in that wandering mind!

• I am grateful for the delicious dinner I had last night
• I am grateful for my mom, who loves me
• I am grateful for the weather today

Read this article from the Gottman Institute to learn more about Rituals of Gratitude.

Work out your senses

Give your brain a bit of a workout by exercising your awareness of your senses. Practicing mindfulness can help to reduce stress and even help you focus.

• Seeing: Pick an object in your environment and try to notice something interesting about it that you might not have before
• Feeling: Bring awareness to every part of your body that is making contact with a surface
• Hearing: Find a noise, like the hum of your computer or the cars outside, and listen to the way it fluctuates
• Smelling: Try to identify a smell around you, like dinner being made or even just the regular smell of the room

Learn more about Using your Senses to Relieve Anxiety with this artcle from Anxiety Canada.

Remind yourself of how great you are!

In stressful moments, it is easy to feel like your self-esteem has taken a beating. When stress is something that we deal with often, like in a university setting, it’s crucial to develop strategies to maintain a high level of self-worth. Try writing down some affirmations in your phone or on a post-it note on your mirror so that they’re fresh in your mind when stress creeps in. These are most effective when they are realistic so feel free to tweak the examples below to fit your life!

• I am still strong even though I am having a hard moment
• I have taken exams that I have done well on before, and I will do well on this one
• Just because I am feeling anxious about this presentation does not mean I am unprepared

Learn about Self-Compassion which is related to affirmations.

Prepare and practice

The best way to use these tools to combat stress is in combination with preparation and practice. Just like when giving a presentation, it’s always best to come prepared with notes; print out this post or jot down a few of your favourite strategies in your phone so that you are prepared with your tools when stressful moments arise. These strategies are great to use in the moment, but will achieve the most success when exercised so that they’re tailored to your current situation.

Learn more

• Drop by the Student Wellness Centre at 162 Extended Education to learn more about how to manage stress during the upcoming exam season
• Check out Healthy U’s Guide to Stress and Anxiety package to learn even more stress-reducing strategies.
• Access Student Supports at UM
• Check out the Student Health and Wellness page

Healthy U is a UM student group made up of a team of friendly volunteers who are trained student health educators. Managed by UM’s Health and Wellness office, Healthy U provides students with validated health information through blog posts, peer office hours, health packages and outreach events. 

Let’s talk about stress and how to reduce it in our daily lives! It has certainly been a stressful year for me with the pandemic, remote learning, not being able to see family and friends as often and the recent strike here at the UofM. Thankfully, stress is something that can be reduced and there are plenty of methods out there to get your stress levels down!

What is stress

First off, what is stress? Stress is a human reaction that occurs in everyone although we all may express or experience it differently. When you experience some sort of stressor or change, your body will produce a mental and physical response to that change.

Some potential stressors include:

• financial constraints (being a student can be hard)
• living away from home
• academic pressures
• entering a new relationship
• graduation
• a new job

Stress is not necessarily a bad thing, as positive stress (eustress) occurs as well. In our lives as students, stress can help us work harder if we know there is an important deadline approaching. Stress can be problematic if the stressors continue without any period of relaxation (or complete removal of the stressor). Prolonged stress can lead to a weakened immune system, headaches, various aches and pains, anxiety, sadness, and even depression.

How to lower our stress levels

So how do we lower our stress levels? There are many ways to cope with stress, but some ways can be adaptive while others may be maladaptive. Everyone is unique, so some techniques to deal with stress may be useful for you while that same technique may not be useful for others. The important thing is finding a technique that can be helpful to you.

Some excellent methods that work for me include eating well, taking some time for myself (self-care), sleeping on time and speaking with friends and family about what is stressing me out.

Another great method is practicing mindfulness meditation. This could look like taking a few minutes to yourself and sitting in a nice quiet area where you can focus on your breathing. During this time, you would meditate with your eyes closed (or open if you prefer) and just focus on your thoughts. The goal of this exercise is to not judge your thoughts, but to openly accept them. Mindfulness meditation can help relieve stress and can also help improve memory—helpful for us as students in my opinion!

Here are some resources that you can access to help lower your stress levels and learn more about stress:

• Student Counselling Centre (SCC) here at the UofM
• Health Link BC
• Heart & Stroke

Sources:

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/11874-stress

https://timely.md/blog/stress-management-tips-for-college-students/

This is an edited version of a piece that was previously published on the Healthy U website.

Mindfulness Meditation for Turbulent Times

March 24 – May 5, 2020
12:10 pm – 12:30 pm – Monday to Thursday

Join Zoom Meeting (Google Chrome recommended): https://zoom.us/j/451643133

Meeting ID: 451 643 133