Anxiety & Stress 101
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After completing this module, you will be able to...
Identify different types of anxiety and stress
Given the terms and reference materials, incoming college students will classify and recognize the common types of stress and anxiety.
Introduction
Starting college can be an exciting chapter, but it often comes with emotional and mental challenges. Many students experience stress and anxiety as they adjust to new academic pressures, social settings, and responsibilities. Recognizing the different types of stress and anxiety is the first step toward understanding how to manage them. This resource will help students identify common types they may face and build awareness around the signs and causes to empower them, seek support, and develop healthy coping strategies.
What is Anxiety?
Anxiety is a feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease about something with an uncertain outcome. Everyone experiences anxiety as it's a natural response to stress, however when it becomes excessive or persistent then it may begin to creep into your daily life.
What is Stress?
Stress is one of the ways your body reacts to physical, mental, or emotional challenges. Situations that make you feel threatened, overwhelmed, or pressured can cause stress. Stress is a natural response but too much over time can affect your well-being.
Types of anxiety
Anxiety, like ice cream, comes in various flavors each with their own triggers and traits. Some common forms of anxiety include the following:
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Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) - ongoing worry about multiple aspects of life such as school, health, relationships, finances (& others) even when there’s no immediate threat. This type of anxiety is general, which means, worrying for just about anything.
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Social Anxiety - fear of being embarrassed or judged, especially in social situations like when meeting people, speaking in class, and working with groups.
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Test Anxiety - intense fear or panic before or during exams. This is often causing physical symptoms such as nausea, rapid heartbeat, or mental blocks.
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Performance Anxiety - this is related to having to perform well. It can also apply to academics, sports, or class presentations.
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Separation Anxiety - difficulty adjusting to being away from home, family, or familiar environments. This is common in first year students and those who moved away from home to attend college.
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Health Anxiety - worry or fear about physical health. This can be worsened by the stress of balancing a busy college life.
Common Stressors
While we've looked at broad causes for stress earlier, here's some common stressors that you as a college student may encounter:
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Academic stress - pressure to maintain good grades, meet deadlines, and succeed in a competitive environment.
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Financial stress - worrying about tuition, rent, bills, student loans, etc, especially if students are working or managing budgets on their own.
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Career stress - has to do with choosing a major, finding internships, or figuring out what to do after graduation.
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Relationship stress - tension from romantic relationships, friendships, or family issues especially when trying to juggle them with school responsibilities.
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Time management stress - struggling to balance coursework, jobs, social life, and personal time without feeling overwhelmed. This can also include procrastination.
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Adjustment stress - this refers to the emotional and psychological strain that arises from trying to adapt to a new lifestyle, set of expectations, environment (place and people), especially during transitions.
