Studies have found that 60% of college students suffer from anxiety, and this number continues to grow.
This means that if you’re a college student, chances are you already have anxiety or are at high risk of developing it.
As troubling as anxiety is, it’s particularly detrimental to students whose grades suffer as a result. It’s easy to fall into the self-fulfilling prophecy and the endless cycle of anxiety and low grades. Worrying to the point of anxiousness results in lower grades that, in turn, cause more anxiety.
It’s a scary cycle that does just as much damage to one’s health and well-being as it does to their test scores.
Fortunately, there’s plenty you can do to ease your stress and help prevent anxiety from taking over. Despite its prevalence, it’s quite treatable.
The first steps to bettering your grades and mental health in college are to understand what anxiety is, where it comes from, and how to beat it.
Read on to learn how to minimize college-related anxiety with tactics from reducing your financial burden with cheap textbooks to developing grade-improving habits.
Understanding Anxiety and How It Affects School Performance
Anxiety is a natural reaction to stress-inducing situations that everyone experiences now and then. In fact, it was initially developed as an evolutionary response to help keep us alive.
Even so, students are increasingly experiencing intense and frequent anxiety at a level that affects their day-to-day. Once anxiety reaches this interruptive level, it begins to negatively impact their performance in school.
How does this happen?
Anxiety disrupts the thought process with student concerns. This means that while students are in a lecture or attempting to study, it reduces their ability to concentrate as their mind becomes preoccupied. As a result, they can don’t get as much out of their learning experience as they could.
Once anxiety becomes more extreme, it results in physical ailments. A student suffering from anxiety might frequently complain about headaches, nausea, or stomach pains. In turn, they might miss class to stay home and rest or become further distracted.
Even if attendance isn’t effected, they’re in no condition to retain or call upon information. Experts have found that anxiety negatively impacts memory – a vital tool when taking a test.
Worst case scenario, anxiety encourages students to drop out. According to one survey, half of the students who dropped out did so because of anxiety related to financial stress.
Why Students Are Anxious in the First Place
This begs the question: Why are students stressed and what can be done about it?
College is a time of great change in a student’s life, and becoming self-reliant is one of these changes. From a young age, you look forward to becoming your own boss, without considering the harsh realities that come with it.
Many students aren’t prepared to become financially independent, and the increasing cost of college doesn’t help.
Tuition is hard enough to pay on its own without the hidden costs many forget to consider – like textbooks. The average student pays over $1,200 in textbooks alone per year.
As the costs add up, students have a choice to make: Go into extreme debt or get a job – maybe even two.
As though the financial stress wasn’t enough, you’re now looking at less time to do schoolwork and study. Not to mention the time your brain needs to rest and socialize for its own well-being.
This type of downhill slope is why it’s essential that students learn how to save money where it counts.
How to Minimize Your College Anxiety
Fortunately, there are several ways you can prevent anxiety from affecting your college career.
Reduce Financial Stress With Cheap Textbooks
As previously mentioned, one of the keys ways to help minimize anxiety in college is to practice effective financial habits. By becoming a discount shopper, you can lessen your financial burden and reduce money-related stress.
Students can start by looking for cheap textbooks.
You already know how expensive they end up being, but do you know that you can save 70% when you rent textbooks?
Another way to lessen your financial burden is to sell textbooks you have leftover. Once you’ve passed the class they’re just taking up space, after all.
Practice Time Management
You can also get ahead of your anxiety by practicing time management skills. Frequently, anxiety gets the better of students who allow their assignments to build up and procrastinate studying.
By learning to understand what causes your procrastination and how to beat it, you simultaneously weaken anxiety’s hold on you.
It’s recommended that you schedule at least a small portion of your textbooks to read every day to increase productivity and memory retention.
Build Healthy Behaviors
While time management is one healthy behavior to work on, there are several others to practice as well.
Research shows that how a person eats impacts their mood and brain functioning.
You might find that changing your mindset helps, too. It’s all too easy to succumb to thoughts of worst-case-scenario and feeling overwhelmed. You can try to remember that education is a privilege few people get and shift your thought processes towards gratitude.
Lastly, you should continue to build relationships with your peers. Set up study groups to review textbook material and remember to give yourself time to socialize. This will lessen anxiety and help your grades in the long run.
Fight Anxiety and Boost Your Grades
Anxiety is a scary thing, but it’s important to remember that you have power over your mind and life. By taking action, you gain control of your grades and your future.
A lot of anxiety comes from financial stress, so remember to play it smart and buy cheap textbooks when you can. It can save you thousands.
You’ll also want to set up a time management plan and study groups when possible.
Follow these steps, and acing college will get a lot easier.
If you found this helpful, check out our other blog posts for advice on getting the most out of your college experience.