Offers stress-reduction tips, helps students manage exam pressures with first ever “stress-buster” carnival featuring free seminars, massages
TORONTO, November 29, 2004 -- When exam time rolls around and students hit the books, what they learn can impact more than just their GPA.
“We hear so much about stress in the workplace, and how that can be detrimental to our health, but the ground work for good habits is really learned in school,” says York U Health Education & Promotion Coordinator Janis Ellis-Claypool.
Tomorrow, Health York and students belonging to York is U, the university’s alumni association, will host the inaugural “Fall Stress Buster” carnival. It aims to help students cope with “end of semester” stress caused by a deluge of tests, term papers, and exams.
The events, happening across campus, feature seminars on stress reduction techniques, proper sleep and eating routines, and how to identify and tackle “unhealthy” coping mechanisms like overeating, smoking and drinking. More than a dozen massage therapists will offer their services to students free of charge, and student volunteers will be handing out hundreds of hand-made “stress balls.” Students can also kick back and relax with carnival games and performances by groups including York’s Tai Chi club and Break Dance club.
“Students can get pretty stressed with essays and finals piling up,” says Jeremy Greenberg, Coordinator of Student Alumni Programs. “Stress Buster Carnival provides not only an escape, but also empowers students to manage stress and thrive despite it.”
Claypool says the pressures of academic study can be relatively uncharted territory, especially for undergraduate students.
“It may be the first time they are facing these kinds of challenges, and if they don’t learn to manage stress at this stage, they’re going to take that with them into the workplace and later life in general. Ultimately, we’re always going to have stress in our lives – deadlines, traffic jams, bills, family responsibilities – so it’s imperative that we learn these coping skills early on.”
York University also recently began its “Wellness Wednesdays” initiative, a year-round preventative health program featuring weekly seminars and health tips for students, faculty and staff.
10 Tips for Dealing with Stress:
1) Recognize your symptoms of stress -- tense shoulders, headaches, upset stomach, overactive bowels.
2) Look at your lifestyle and see what can be changed.
3) Use relaxation techniques -- yoga, mediation, deep breathing, or massage.
4) Exercise -- physical activity is one of the most effective stress remedies around.
5) Time Management -- do essential tasks and prioritize the others. Consider those who may be affected by your decisions, such as family and friends. Use a check-list so you will receive satisfaction as you check off each job as it is done.
6) Watch your diet - a diet with a balance of fruit, vegetables, whole grains and foods high in fibre.
7) Get enough sleep and rest.
8) Talk with others -- support can be so helpful.
9) Laugh and have some fun!
10) Tackle one thing at a time -- set realistic expectations and don't try to do too much all at once.
ork University is the leading interdisciplinary teaching and research university in Canada. York offers a modern, academic experience at the undergraduate and graduate level in Toronto, Canada’s most international city. The third largest university in the country, York is host to a dynamic academic community of 50,000 students and 7,000 faculty and staff, as well as 180,000 alumni worldwide. York’s 10 faculties and 21 research centres conduct ambitious, groundbreaking research that is interdisciplinary, cutting across traditional academic boundaries. This distinctive and collaborative approach is preparing students for the future and bringing fresh insights and solutions to real-world challenges.
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For further information, please contact:
Melissa Hughes, Media Relations Officer, York University, 416-736-2100 x22097
