Stress, fatigue and burnout: When academic and pandemic worlds collide – Tangerine
In a year filled with uncertainty about COVID-19 and other social issues, Utica College is now past the midway point in the fall 2021 semester and many students are bound to experience fatigue and stress due to academic, work, athletic and social commitments.
According to Clinical Counse…….
In a year filled with uncertainty about COVID-19 and other social issues, Utica College is now past the midway point in the fall 2021 semester and many students are bound to experience fatigue and stress due to academic, work, athletic and social commitments.
According to Clinical Counselor John Ossowski, academic stress can translate into deep insecurities about a student’s abilities. Pre-pandemic, students were already under a lot of pressure to achieve in order to feel like they were making the most of the time, effort and money they put towards college.
“We are dealing with a situation where it is more about the outcome of grades, rather than the growth we experience from learning,” Ossowski said. “Honestly, I don’t know if students are enjoying learning as much as they would if the pressure to perform, or the fear of failure, was not so high. Now, add into this all the uncertainty the pandemic has caused – especially economic uncertainties – and you have a situation where students might literally question the value of their current investments in higher education. These are very stressful times for students.”
The process of returning to life pre-pandemic is challenging and things are not quite how they were previously.
“I think we are moving towards how things were pre-pandemic, but we are not there yet,” Ossowski said. “We’re only just getting used to socializing and going back to classes in-person. It seems like there is a slow progression back to the in-person social connections we had prior to COVID.”
Utica College’s Counseling Center provides students with the resources they need to have conversations and get help with any challenges they may face while at college. According to the Director of New Health and Wellness T.J. Lane, Utica College has seen a 30% increase in sessions from pre-COVID-19 numbers at this point in the semester.
“I see counseling services as important, not only for coping with challenges, but growing and thriving as well,” Ossowski said. “It is important to remember that therapy is not about fixing you. I believe everyone has inside themselves a solution for what they are seeking, but sometimes we all need a little help in discovering it. That’s what we do in the counseling center.”
There have been many instances where students have said they are either stressed, fatigued or burnt-out during this academic semester.
“With the return to the classroom, some students have struggled with time management and finding their routine,” Director of Student Success Bethany Samuels said. “I think this is because online learning provides more flexibility with setting your own daily schedules. Students now …….
