University life can feel like a rollercoaster. Most students at some point will find themselves feeling overwhelmed with feelings of stress and anxiety, whether it be from academic pressures or personal challenges. From my experience I know that I often lack the coping skills to deal with these thoughts and feelings, and find myself looking for a ‘quick fix’. 

The truth is that there is no quick fix for stress, but taking time to learn how to recognise harmful thought patterns and positive coping skills is always worthwhile. CBT (also known as cognitive behavioural therapy) is a popular approach to therapy and used in a wide range of settings. Part of the reason for CBT’s popularity is that some techniques can be used as “self-help” tools, because a lot of the positive change takes place through practicing techniques in your everyday life. 

If you’re feeling stuck in a stressful place and looking for an escape route, then look no further. Hopefully the following ideas can help you to manage your stress effectively during your university journey. 

Step 1: Keeping a journal

CBT therapists will often have their clients keep a journal of their mood over several weeks. This can help to identify what might be causing the stress, the thoughts and feelings that are coming up because of the stress, and how it is impacting your life. 

You can use a classic diary format or a template from the internet to better structure your journal. One example you could try is the ABC model. ABC stands for Activating event (what happened before your mood changed), Belief (what you thought about when it happened) and Consequence (how you feel afterwards). 

For example, imagine you are revising for an important exam and someone on your course mentions how difficult the exam is going to be, which leads to you feeling anxious. The Activating event would be your course mate talking about the exam, the Belief may be “I am not good enough to do this exam”, and the Consequence would be feelings of anxiety. Using the ABC model gets you thinking about how events shape the beliefs you have about yourself and the world. 

Step 2: Recognising negative thought patterns.

When you are journalling, you may find that some negative thoughts or beliefs re-occur more than others. Take note of them and when they are happening. This can help you to recognise situations that could trigger unhelpful thinking.

You can also challenge negative thought patterns by writing down evidence against them. For example, if you notice that a re-occuring thought is: “I am not good enough to do this exam”, then you could challenge that thought by writing about times when your exams have gone well, or when you did better than you expected academically. You might be surprised how much evidence there is to the contrary of your negative thoughts!

Step 3: Positive coping strategies

Coping strategies will be different for everyone. The key is to pick ones that help to physically and mentally relax you so that you can use them when you feel that stress level rising. Some common examples are exercising, deep breathing, speaking with friends and family, mindfulness or even spending time on a hobby. Choose what works for you and get into the habit of using them when negative thoughts start bubbling up. 

Other helpful coping strategies may include using a worry tree, or actively trying to problem solve persistent worries that are stubborn to relaxation techniques. The worry tree is a logical series of questions that you can work through when you have identified a worry.

Step 4: Seek help when you need it

Self-help can be a really useful tool in managing stress at university, and I hope that this post has provided some ideas for you to improve your wellbeing. However, if your stress is becoming overwhelming, or you are dealing with high levels of anxiety, please seek professional support. 

The university counselling service can be contacted through this page: https://www.counsellingservice.manchester.ac.uk/

Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) provides wellbeing support to adults over the age of 18, based on CBT techniques. The Manchester IAPT self-referral form can be found here: https://www.iaptportal.co.uk/ServiceUser/SelfReferralForm.aspx?sd=53af4dd6-3d47-4869-8588-71cb87fbe022

The student support website also has advice on getting support for mental and physical health, reporting harassment, academic and financial support as well as how to get help in a crisis: https://www.studentsupport.manchester.ac.uk/

This blog post has been fact checked by a qualified CBT therapist.