By Kristin Keeley

I glance at the clock on the wall. 11:22 a.m. The minutes keep flying by with regard to no one nor their deadlines. My paper is due to the teacher at 5 p.m., and I am still trying to secure one last interview, while frantically racking my brain to be able to bring words to my computer screen.

My head feels empty and my heart rate steadily rises as the deadline looms closer. I want to go running and relieve some of the frustrations, but I have to finish the paper.

In a final act of desperation, I reach for the chocolate I hid in my cupboard just last night.

To put it mildly, one might say I am stressed out. I guess it's a good thing that I am writing my assignment on managing stress...

People everywhere, and college students in particular, are faced with huge amounts of stress every day. How does one keep from letting stress rule your life? How does one keep from being "all stressed up"? Where do you go to find relief for the all-too-common ailment of stress? How does one maintain control when situations, people, and events make excessive demands? The answer, my friends, is to learn to manage your stress.

The years spent in college may well be some of the most stressful you will ever face. Challenges with roommates and relationships, having to figure out life on your own, having to figure out a budget, academic deadlines and expectations all add up to a pretty big load of stress.

Mike Molyneux, a sophomore at Utah State University majoring in civil engineering, says his three biggest stresses are homework, lack of time, and dating.

"In college, things that people used to do to relieve stress, they don't have time to do anymore," Molyneux said. "I have to find quick ways to manage my stress.

"When I have time," Molyneux adds, "I like to work out. I like to run, lift weights--cardio stuff. If I really have time, I go swimming."

Too often though, busy college students find themselves with not enough hours in a day to get everything done, let alone find time to exercise and release stress. Molyneux advises students to "just take it a chunk at a time. Be methodical. Just get it done."

Even after graduation the stresses don't just go away, they simply shift to new area of your life.

Tressa Manwaring is a special education teacher at Wilson Elementary in Logan. She unhesitatingly states that work is the major source of stress in her life. Trying to meet all the different expectations--her own and those of others--adds to her stress.

"I don't deal well with my stress," Manwaring says with a half-hearted laugh. "Maybe if I did, it would go away."

In reality, Manwaring does do things to deal with the stressors. Recently she took a day off of work to just relax and pull herself together again. She also finds release through exercise and spiritual time. The best advice Manwaring has for dealing with stress is "to just face the problem head on, figure out a solution, and then act on it."

Utah State University offers a class called stress management. Donna Gordon teaches the class techniques to better face and deal with their stress. Each week in the semester-long course, a new technique is introduced and practiced. Diaphragmatic or deep breathing, visualization, meditation, journal writing, yoga, music and art therapy, massage, humor, and physical exercise are among the suggestions introduced in class.

Some tips for dealing with stress are shared by the University of St. Thomas:

* Look around and see if there is anything you can change about the situation, take a break from it if possible.

* PRIORITIZE!!

* Work on changing your reaction to stressful situations.

* Get enough sleep.

* Learn to relax.

* Set realistic goals.

* Don't overwhelm yourself--just take it one piece at a time.

* Change the way you see things and turn stress into a positive thing.

* Do something for others.

* Physical activity.

* Be positive.

The ten commandments for managing stress emphasize the need for organization, good nutrition, and humor.

One of the greatest strategies which I have found to work for me (which I have used multiple times while writing this paper!) is deep breathing. Deep breathing brings oxygen into your blood stream and helps you relax, find energy, resist anger, and de-stress.

Leveda Troy, a professional trainer for the International Breath Institute, says, "Breathing is a great form of stress relief, because everyone breathes. You just have to do it properly." To gain the most from the deep breathing, one needs to fill the lungs completely with air, then exhale until the lungs are empty. Inhale fully again, then exhale, multiple times.

"Every time a person has a trauma, they hold their breath--suppressing the bad feelings," Troy explains. "If you don't breathe, you keep the bad feelings in."

Deep breathing is something simple that people can do just about anywhere, anytime to relieve stress.

"Even just spending ten minutes in the morning and ten minutes in the evening doing deep breathing can help tremendously," Troy says. "Breathing removes toxins from your body." Troy suggested using gentle, rhythmic music to help control your breathing exercises.

She adds that those doing deep breathing might feel tingling in the body or lightheadedness, but it's okay because "you are hyper-oxygenating--or bringing large amounts of oxygen into your blood stream."

The benefits of deep breathing go beyond relieving stress. Continuous practice of breathing can help to lower blood pressure and can relieve depression.

"When you let go of all you've been holding onto, you are able to move forward in life. By unlocking the breath, it allows this forward movement," explains Troy. "But breathing can only assist you in the process. It's not a magic bullet."

So is there a "magic bullet" for relieving stress? Probably not, but like all things, practice makes perfect, and by implementing some of the techniques discussed, the mountain of stress may begin to be conquered.

...2:59 p.m. I take a deep breath again, realizing that a stress in my life is almost over. It's a process that we all go through, the ups and downs of life, the big stresses, the little stresses. But we make it through one way or another.

I think the greatest key in dealing with stress is summed up in few words by Viktor Frankl, a Nazi concentration camp survivor: "Everything can be taken away from man but one thing--the last human freedom, to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances."

NW
MS