College is stressful. Students are rushing from one rehearsal or activity to the next, worrying about upcoming exams or projects. When we find a moment of down time our minds are filled with thoughts of what we should be doing.

Too much stress or the wrong kinds of stress can severely affect your health. There are three kinds of stressors: catastrophes, significant life changes and daily hassles. Most college students suffer mainly from the stress of daily hassles.

Stress is a particular worry to people because of recent studies that have shown that high degrees of stress can make you much more susceptible to disease.

So how can we reduce our stress and make our lives easier? Many students ignore problems or things that are stressing them and think they will just go away on their own. This is not a good thing to do.

The first step to managing your stress better is to be aware of what situations are stressful to you and learning what emotional and physical reactions you have to these events. Then you have to evaluate these situations and see what you can do to make them less stressful. Is there something you can do to eliminate a stressful situation entirely? If there were, that would be a good step to take toward making your life less stressful.

Otherwise, look at how you can change the situation to make it more positive. Often it is just the way that you interpret things that determines how they affect your mind and body. If you think to yourself that situations aren't too bad and don't blow problems out of proportion your stress level will be significantly lower.

Another thing to do is to look at your personality and see what things you do that could be leading to a higher stress level. For example, do you try to please everyone? Do you overreact to situations? Do you expect yourself to be perfect? These are all unhealthy ways of thinking that can lead to higher stress levels.

One thing that will generally help with a stressful situation is getting away from it. Take frequent breaks from studying. (Not for a couple of hours, but just a few minutes). Stay in shape. The more you exercise the less likely it is that you will have stress related illnesses.

Maintaining meaningful friendships is also very helpful in reducing stress. It is helpful to talk about your problems with friends and people that care about you. Journals are also helpful for venting about problems. When people keep problems bottled up inside, they are more apt to "blow up" over small things.

However you choose to deal with stress, it is imperative that you do deal with it. Unchecked stress can affect your health and emotional stability. Evaluate your life often and make sure that you don't let small everyday hassles get you down.