how to manage stress

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Hi everyone,

I am nursing student, I think I have problem managing my stress level, I feel okay, but another day after finals i notice a lot of hear falling out, I google and review my med surg book, I believe my hear fall out because of stress. Even so I ending up with A- in my class, I was afraid to fail because my exams average was at 84 % . 2 weeks later i see that my hair still fall out but more than usual, but way less compare than 2 weeks ago.

I manage my stress by studying from 6 am in the morning and going to bed at 9 30 sharp every day, I listen to music on my brakes, I eat my food out side in piece with out book or any study materials for 30 minute, I eat health vegetables and fruits, I also eat chocolate candy (in moderation) , I walk and study for 2 - 3 h every other day, I also dance zumba or just jumping on trampoline 2- 3 times a week. I diffuse oils in my study room, I have dedicated place to study , I use bath and body antu stress products with anti stress lotion, I also have tons of oils for my oil diffuser and and apply for my skin. I usually doing nothing on Fridays (watching movie or eating pizza, some times I would go to massage, foot massage or to the special relaxation pool) I cook my own food and listening to music. I take multi vitamines, 1- 2 pills of Valerian roots in addition to anti stress formula by swanson (commercial formula) .I also do not drink any alcohol, I only drink green tea with herbs and a lot of clear water. I see doctor every 6 months my lab was okay, just 3 months ago. Every week I sing at church (I have great support group there we really have fun ) some times I study at different places like at the lake, small creek, and even next to swamp. Every brake between semesters I spend on cruse ship (cheap one for 7 days)

What also can be done to help me to manage stress ? I see only option to see my doctor and begin taking something like ssri or snri

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Convince yourself that it's only school. Even if you fail, then never get accepted to any other school (unlikely), and can't become a nurse, it's not the end of the world, and there's tons of other jobs in healthcare, some way more involved than nursing. There's some really cool careers you can get into in healthcare, that always get overlooked for nursing.

A lot of the stress of nursing school comes from the mentality of "I have to be a nurse." If you fail, you fail, you just do something else. It's not worth stressing that much over a future job.

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I suffer pretty badly with stress and one thing that really helps me is just to take one day at a time. Instead of thinking "Oh my goooosh if I don't become a nurse, I'm ruined!" make day-to-day ATTAINABLE goals and write them down. Schedule mandatory fun time every day- your brain will thank you for it (aim for 30mins to an hour to do NOTHING school related). Try to appreciate "the moment" more if that makes sense - don't let stressful things build up and knock you down; instead, accept that there is stress and try to think rationally about what you CAN do (that's where the attainable goals list comes in). It feels great to cross things off the list and watch it shrink~

I still have to be mindful of my mindset, but it's getting easier to coach myself into accepting that things are stressful at present, but there are things that I can do.

Now, IF your anxiety remains high and it's negatively impacting your life, I suggest that you talk to someone - does your school have a free counselor? Mine does and she's improved my quality of life 100-fold. Just having someone to talk my problems out with has been amazing, and she gave me a bunch of coping techniques to help break through my stress/anxiety attacks.

If you do get a referral for psych it is -not- the end of the world. If you do need to take meds, it's okay.

I hope that one way or another you find a way to manage your stress levels!

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HI, I like the idea of thinking about 1 day at the time, also we have free services for students o talk to counselors, but I fully dedicate my self to school, I do not work and spend just a few hours a week with my family, friends and boyfriend, so i do not believe that i have much to talk about with counselor

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HI, I like the idea of thinking about 1 day at the time, also we have free services for students o talk to counselors, but I fully dedicate my self to school, I do not work and spend just a few hours a week with my family, friends and boyfriend, so i do not believe that i have much to talk about with counselor

You'll be surprised - talk about your stress etc. and they will be able to help you with some strategies that can help you overcome it.

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