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The Reflector

The Student Newspaper of Mississippi State University

The Reflector

The Student Newspaper of Mississippi State University

The Reflector

Hot Take: ‘Calm down’ is useless

Dont+Tell+Me+To+Calm+Down
Don’t Tell Me To Calm Down

Overstressing is the epitome of being a college student.
Amidst the busiest weeks, it is easy to feel like there is so much to do and not enough time to do it. I can recall a week where all five of my classes had exams, and I felt like I had no time to decompress.
Essentially, I was in a mode where I took one exam and rushed to get back to studying for the rest of them. During those overwhelming moments, I felt like I would never be able to escape until I made it past my deadlines.
Some people, however, suggest that simply calming down and taking a moment to catch your breath will help you overcome these high feelings of emotion. There is some reasoning behind why people recommend this to others, yet often, this suggestion is not entirely helpful.
Yes, slowing down gives momentary relief, but sometimes, the pressure is overwhelming and cannot be broken quickly. Often, the feelings linger until you have completed the task that has been bothering you.  
Rather than offering advice to calm down or to take a second to breathe, people should instead encourage others to believe that they will make it through their challenges or stress. 
The most important thing to learn from fighting the feeling of being overwhelmed or stressed is that once you complete a battle with it, you will come out of the situation knowing you can withstand more than you thought. 
The feeling of surviving and overcoming stress is what helps you to learn to cope with it in the long term. The next time you have a stressful experience, you will be confident that you can make it through and will likely not feel as worried as you were the first time. 

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The Student Newspaper of Mississippi State University
Hot Take: ‘Calm down’ is useless