COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Mental Health Awareness Month sheds a light not only on long-term psychological well-being but the issues that appear in our lives due to daily and seasonal challenges.
Plenty of Texas A&M students may be feeling overwhelmed by their upcoming final exams at the moment. Aggie senior Elia Espinosa is just days away from graduating and said she is happy to only face a single final exam this week. Looking back four years to her freshman self, Espinosa recalls the plight of a young student overwhelmed by tests.
“I think I should have studied throughout the whole semester and not crammed everything till the last minute because it does pay off to know what the content is," she told to KRHD.
Likewise, Espinosa’s friend Jocelyn Marquez, also a graduating senior, recalls how exams were especially stressful before she planned out a healthy approach to studying.
“It was more stressful than I thought it would be," she said. "I would spend sleepless nights by my dorm or like at Evans [library].”
Austin Wilcox, a licensed therapist with Texas A&M’s Counseling and Psychological Services, said he and his colleagues treat an influx of students at this time each year, overwhelmed with final exams and research projects.
"Let’s go back to the basics," he said, explaining what he asks his patients to consider. "Have I drank an appropriate amount of water today? Have I eaten and have I gotten sleep today? Have I talked to someone today other than myself, and my notes and books? Have I communicated with another person?"
It’s important to practice self-care when managing stress, but Wilcox noted that it’s also important for students to recognize if they're thinking fatalistically about their college career, harmfully telling themselves that doing badly on a test will ruin their future. That thinking is something he'd like to see students avoid.
For free counseling services, Texas A&M students can reach out to CAPS through the following link:
Counseling & Psychological Services – Division of Student Affairs (tamu.edu)