The art of coping with stress

Dr. Peg is out this week, so I will be filling in as the voice of health-consciousness.

I’m glad to have the opportunity because I think students should receive wellness tips from peers and trained professionals.

But only fellow students can truly relate to the issues you’re dealing with and offer advice in the parlance of our times. So the first thing I’d advise is that you melt a stick of butter and free-base some Altoids. Let’s get started.

Students often deal with worries. Worry that you’ve not studied hard enough to pass a test, that you’re not prepared for class, or that your significant other has a thing for their lab partner.

Worry leads to sadness and stress, which can wreak havoc on your immune system and drain your energy. In a book called Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers, Robert Sapolsky introduces the idea that we should deal with worry the way animals do: by fighting, running, or some other spontaneous action that frees our minds of stress and allows us to focus on immediate concerns.

Do that. Whenever you feel worried or are bringing yourself down, get impulsive and express it. Don’t internalize stress. You’ll just cause yourself physical damage.

I, for one, have a bad habit of carrying my stress in my stomach, which gives me stomach aches. I stay awake at night and think about all of the things I should have done that day, and that makes me feel guilty and restless. I often deal with this by rapping Usher lyrics into my pillow, but we’ll get to my disturbing release methods in a minute.
I shouldn’t oversimplify that idea.

Just finding an outlet for frustrations will not solve the problem entirely.

Rather, finding the root of worry is key. You must identify what it is, at its core, that causes worry/frustration/stress. By acknowledging it (even if it is something that is hard for you to accept), you fight half the battle.

Then, I recommend treating that realization with a sense of humor. Especially if the underlying problem makes you feel inadequate, it will do wonders to take it less seriously.

Let’s say you embarrassed yourself in class today.

You thought you had a good point, but got laughed at. While it’s easy to say you don’t care about what people think of you, you probably do. And it’s eating you up inside. What I like to do is visualize everyone getting pulled apart by horses while I cackle from my throne.

No. I mean what I like to do is put on Kid Rock and do pushups. I mean, what I like to do is to recognize that my embarrassment stems from my insecurity, which always wants to be right. Once I remind myself that no one in the course of history has been right 100 percent of the time, my worry fades.

I have nothing to compare myself to and no reason to feel stupid.
I laugh it off because I know that every mistake is a valuable lesson, and my happiness does not depend on getting my peers to agree with me.

And once I’m done with all that, I feel fine. I laugh at myself for caring in the first place. As many wise people have said, “Don’t sweat the small stuff.” And I’ll echo that sentiment to the fullest.

Don’t give a single shit about the little problems.

Focus on the big ones, and run past the little ones like a proud Zebra.
I can’t stress enough (no pun intended) the value of meditation. I know it’s hard to sit still for a few minutes and do nothing but breathe. But if you can do that one thing, I think you’ll find that the stress-release process mentioned earlier happens naturally.

Meditation can be so much more than just sitting, though. Lift weights. Listen to music. Nap with your eyes open. It’s whatever you can do to steady your mind. And the key is to keep your mind from sabotaging your body.
If all else fails, most people know how to grab a beer, and that’s cool, too.
I’m an advocate of whatever helps you get past your worry. While alcohol does destroy the body, it soothes the mind. It can also get you laid, which is perhaps the greatest stress-relieving tactic.
So go get laid. I really can’t think of any better way to get over your worries.