By Michelle Woodbury
''Tis the season for papers, projects and final exams -- also known to the average student as stress inducers.
Many students embarking on this demanding time of year have a hard time getting into the holly-jolliness of the Christmas season. Instead of hanging Christmas lights and perfecting Grandma''s homemade eggnog recipe, students find themselves wired in front of a computer, cranking out assignment after assignment.
'I am becoming an insomniac because I am so stressed over papers and everything else that''s due right now,' said Janine Ghallagher from Chandler, Ariz. 'This is supposed to be the best time of the year, but because of school, it has been the worst.'
Gallagher said she feels badly she has not had the chance get into the Christmas spirit because of the demands of school and work.
Fear not, students, help is here. Stress management experts offer their sound advice to help students through this stressful time and enjoy what is left of the holiday season.
Realize you''re not Superman or Superwoman.
Lynette Waldron, co-owner of the Self Empowerment Center in Sandy, said stress is self-induced and many people have unrealistic expectations of themselves.
'People are really hard on themselves,' Waldron said. 'If they don''t get everything done perfectly they go into a depression. You''ve got to be realistic with the tasks you take on.'
While students may not have a choice in the workload professors assign, they can have a choice in how many 'extras' they put on their plate.
Practice visualization.
Waldron said if people create the scenario in their minds that they are not facing a stressful situation, they can actually relieve their bodies from feeling stressed.
'You''ve got to change the way you look at the stress inducing events,' Waldron said. 'The mind is a powerful thing.'
The stressful situations are still very much a reality (i.e. finals are still going to happen), but people feel much better physically if they can train their minds to think happy thoughts.
Use time management tools
Waldron said much of students'' stress comes from procrastination of assignments, not from the assignments themselves.
'Planning ahead significantly helps,' she said. 'But at the same time don''t make your planning so rigid it keeps you from being flexible.'
According to an article written by Dr. Tara Kuther at www.gradschool.about.com, using time affectively can dramatically decrease the amount of stress a student has.
To-do lists may be daunting once students see on paper just how many things they have to accomplish, but it helps them to prioritize, according to the Web site.
Also, consider doing Christmas shopping via the Internet if there is no time to hit the mall during finals week.
Get a massage
Sid Napper of Stress Management Therapies in Salt Lake City, said people take the stresses of life and put them in their necks and shoulders.
'The more should-do''s you have, the more stress and tension you''re going to have built up in your shoulders,' Napper said.
A massage is a great way to relieve that tension, Napper said.
'It''s not selfish to take care of yourself,' he said. 'People are willing to spend more on their automobiles than on themselves, and it should be the other way around.'
Evaluate relationships
'In my experiences in stress management, I have found that the main reason people are stressed is because they have problems with their relationships,' said Dr. Jan Graf, a stress management consultant in St. George.
He said people are easily offended and their first reaction is to retaliate.
'We''re not retaliators by nature, so we swallow our offended feelings and they stay bottled up inside of us,' Graf said.
Over time, those bottled up feelings create stress and tension in our lives, Graf said.
'The solution is so simple that many people miss it,' he said. 'You have to learn to forgive.'
Graf said once people learn to forgive, it improves their health, relationships and eliminates stress.