Stress is something that we all seem to deal with on a daily basis. Some of our stressors are much larger and much more crippling than others, but stress is something we have gotten used to dealing with instead of trying to fix what’s causing the stress we feel. 

According to The American Institute of Stress, “About 33 percent of people report feeling extreme stress… 77 percent of people experience stress that affects their physical health… 73 percent of people have stress that impacts their mental health… 48 percent of people have trouble sleeping because of stress.” This is an absolutely shocking statistic to me. Between 73 and 77 percent of the United States population are dealing with stress on a regular basis.

One article from Guide2Research says, “45% of American college students claimed to undergo ‘more than average stress,’ while 33% of students reported ‘average stress’ and 12.7% saying it is ‘tremendous stress.’ Students who reported ‘no stress’ or ‘less than average stress’ combined for 9% total… 8 out of 10 university students in the U.K. reported stress and/or anxiety in school.” If we assume the statistic gathered from the United Kingdom holds true for students in the United States, then roughly 80 percent of students are feeling stress or anxiety on a regular basis. 

Iowa State has asked some students what resources on campus they may use to combat their stress, and they formulated the following list: “The Yoga Club, Hixson Lied Student Success Center, Student Assistance and Outreach Services, It’s All About ME Spa, Perfect Games, McFarland Park, Fitness Classes, Intramural Sports, Massage Heights, [and] Parks Library.” I appreciate the broadness of this list, making sure there is an option for almost everyone. 

From this list and personal experience, I can say that many of these options are great stress relievers. Taking one hour a day for yourself is very important to maintaining stress levels and keeping them at a manageable level. For instance, Iowa State’s fitness classes are either held in person or online, making it available to the largest number of people. Participating in a fitness class will not only get you moving and away from a screen, but it will also give you one hour of your time that you will be spending on yourself. 

Secondly, things like Perfect Games and Iowa State intramural sports are great outlets to spend some time with friends and spend time socializing, not thinking about midterms or assignments. We may have taken the forced socialization that schools always made us do, but through COVID-19, I can say that I miss all of it.

If you’re feeling stressed, give some of the solutions above a try. The worst that can happen is you do something different for an hour or so and you figure out that that particular stress solution doesn’t work well for you.