Yvonnie Bailey- Davidson Dear Counsellor:
I am attending university and I feel depressed and stressed. Sometimes I feel overwhelmed and unable to cope. How can you help?
- Morgan
Dear Morgan:
Congratulations to you for making it to university. Not many people have a university degree. As with many things, our achievements can be sources of stress. University is different from high school or prep school in that you are left alone to make your way.
You can seek the help of a lecturer or the faculty adviser. Many universities have student-friendly administrationswhich help students to solve their problems. Make enquiries about the availability of counsellors to do therapy with students. Many individuals who are attending university find it challenging and stressful. Make sure you are doing courses that you are interested in or will help you to achieve your career goals.
Many people focus only on academics, not realising that their socialisation is important too. We need to meet people, make friends and join organisations. We need to attend to our social needs and keep ourselves from being lonely and depressed. If the student has left home, he or she is without family and friends. You need to keep in touch with family and old friends by telephone, email or letters.
Many students find that there are many new experiences and situations. One needs to assess the risks and sharpen our problem-solving and decision-making skills. The important goal of attending university is to get your degree. You should not let anything interfere with achieving this goal. Study schedules and tutorial groups are important in improving your chances of graduating.
Attention to your nutrition is necessary as students need calories to be able to study and get good grades. Of course, near examination time, the amount of sleep will be diminished as you prepare for the tests. Attending church is important as we all need a spiritual guide to help us along our life journey.
If you implement these measures and you are still depressed, you need to get counselling to help you to cope.
Contact Dr. Yvonnie Bailey-Davidson at 978-8602 or 791-1778, or email yvonniebd@hotmail.com.
