Nazaryan Davit

HED 004 #74738 Project 3

22 November, 2017

Case Study Analysis

Overview of the case

As a freshman, Katya is going through a difficult transition from high school to college.

She has to cope with the stress alone as she is living away from her family, and there is a

pressure of losing the scholarship if she does not score high grades on the chemistry exam. Due

to the novelty of the situation, high self-expectations and lack of the family and friends support

Katya has developed test anxiety which manifested in the form of a panic attack.

My personal experience

Katyas case echoes my experience of being overwhelmed with the overload of the

studies on the one hand, and the challenge of doing both full-time study and work, on the other.

Moreover, the first semester of the first year in a college, it seems, was the most challenging as it

demanded the total concentration of my mental, physical and emotional energy to study

thoroughly. I needed time to adapt to the requirements of efficiently performing by processing a

large amount of new information. The abrupt change from a routine in which I had a control over

my time, to a situation in which I cannot dedicate time to some leisure activities as my mind is

preoccupied with studies and work, is overwhelming. Although the research has revealed that

time management has more of a buffering effect on stress than does satisfaction with leisure

activities. (Dusselier et al., 2010; Misra & McKean, 2000)

 The skills of time management and of distributing the energy evenly become of

paramount importance. Although in the course of time I gradually get used to the pressure and do

not experience panic attacks, I still get disturbed sleep patterns due to my late night studies.

Recommendations

To help Katya and prepare her for an efficient performance on the exam in a two-day

period, I would ask her to contact her family member or a friend with whom she can discuss her

fears. In fact, college counselors are assigned to play an essential role in reducing anxiety

symptoms or even preventing the potential signs of stress (McCarthy et al., 2006). The emotional

support to an individual who is at the pick of anxiety is essential for reducing the psychological

strains. It has been supported by research that an individuals social network is an important

factor protecting him/her from the harmful effects of life demands (McCarthy et al., 2006).

Also, the studies have attempted to use personal, health, academic environmental factors together

to predict stress in college students. The results indicated that academic issues are at the forefront

of things that cause students stress (Dusseriel et al., 2010). Therefore, the primary responsibility

for supporting students in attaining academic success in and out of class is suggested to be on the

staff working in student support areas who should help students cope with illness and create an

environment that is conducive to study and sleep (Dusseriel et al., 2010).

Conclusion

Stress is an inevitable part of students life. Apart from the health and university

professionals being involved in students' stress management, students should educate themselves

about health issues to recognize the preliminary symptoms of stress and initiate preventive steps.

Nurturing healthy habits such as scheduling the work at the beginning of the semester by

breaking it to down to multiple small and measurable tasks; fueling one's body with healthy
nutritional food, exercising and keeping in touch with friends can help the student cope with

stress both in and out of a classroom.

Reference:

Bhujade, V.M. (2017). Depression, anxiety and academic stress among college students:

A brief review, Indian Journal of Health and Wellbeing, 8(7), 748-751.

Dusselier, L., Dunn, B., Wang, Y., Shelley, M.C., & Whalen D.F. (2010). Personal,

health, academic, and environmental predictors of stress for residence hall

students, Journal of American College Health, 54(1), 15-24.

McCarthy, C.J., Fouladi, R.T., Juncker B.D., & Matheny K.B. (2006). Psychological

resources as stress buffers: Their relationship to university students' anxiety and

depression, Journal of College Counselling, 9, 99110.

Misra, R., & McKean, M. (2000). College students' academic stress and its relation to

their anxiety, time management, and leisure satisfaction, American Journal of

Health Studies, 16(1), 41-51.