Article #3

Students Stressing Out

An Adrian High School graduate was found dead in his fraternity house last week at 5:40 in the morning. His father had said that even though he had been drinking that night that his son was also dealing with being overtired, pushing himself to the limit and was working too hard.
Students these days are prone to pushing themselves to the limit with homework, work and extracurricular activities. Other issues that may be a cause of stress are being away from home for the first time, problems at home, peer pressure and social acceptance. “It’s an adjustment to a whole new life, where you’re trying out new identities and trying to find your place in a social group all over again. We used high school to get into college, and now that college is determining our future, I think that puts a lot of weight on our shoulders,” said freshman Alaynah Faddatz of Ferris State University. A lot of these stressors can be seen in a student’s new sleeping habit along with their new eating habit (most commonly known as the freshman fifteen from all of the unhealthy college food they eat). It’s very important for college students to learn how to manage their time between having fun, working, doing homework and still finding time to their selves.
In 2005, the National College Health Assessment (NCHA) surveyed 17,000 college students. Twenty-five percent of the students reported they have "felt so depressed it was difficult to function" three to eight times in the past 12 months. Twenty one percent of the students reported that they "seriously considered suicide." (lovetoknow.com).
The suggestion that should be made to students that are feeling the stress of college is to talk to someone about it, take a break or even lighten the load of work for the next semester. “You don’t really know what to expect yet and it’s a new adjustment and setting than high school. There’s more freedom so procrastination is a big problem which always stresses me,” said freshman Kayla Ruttinger of Western Michigan University. “I usually try to plan out my day and plan out what I need to get done each week and hopefully I stay on track. I use a planner and sticky notes to remind me of important things I need to do. I always try to leave some time to relax and go out with my friends.”
Another suggestion is to be organized. Students should plan out a study time and recreation time for themselves so they are guaranteed to have time to themselves. “I actually sit down every Monday and block out studying time for my entire week and that makes it a lot less stressful when I have a constructive schedule set,” said Faddatz. “I would suggest to incoming freshmen to schedule classes around ratemyprofessor.com and take naps.”
Students are trying to adjust to a new life when they enter into college. The every day stress can get to some students and may result in drinking, suicide, drugs or even dropping out college all together. These days students need to learn how to handle this stress whether that takes place in high school or a class that has to be taken in a students freshmen year.

Link to original story:
http://www.lenconnect.com/news/x215407497/Adrian-student-mourned