Many college students struggle with anxiety at some point in their academic careers. Pamela Comer, director of McNair Scholars, will present the REDtalk, “Coping with Anxiety,” at 1 p.m., Tuesday, on the sixth floor of Gray Library. The talk will address coping skills and strategies to navigate anxiety.
“It goes a little beyond just your typical steps for like test anxiety, and we’re going to give some ideas for different coping strategies — some really practical things that students can do,” Comer said. “Also, learning to recognize how anxiety exhibits itself in everyday life and our response to different things.”
Students will be given a questionnaire at the beginning of the workshop to identify if anxiety is an issue for them, Comer said.
“The quiz will help identify behavior, and what types of thinking it stems from, whether it’s fear about something, and some strategies to overcome that,” she said.
In addition to identifying the source of anxiety, students will also learn the difference between prevention and intervention, Comer said.
“There’s some things you can do before you get anxious, and then there’s some things that you can do once you’re feeling anxious — once you’re in that moment,” she said. “Just giving them different coping strategies and coping techniques in a very practical workshop.”
Comer said her inspiration came from the course work she did while getting her master’s in clinical mental health counseling, and a student internship with the Samaritan Counseling Centers.
“When I was working in the College of Education, I was working on my second master’s in counseling,” she said. “As part of my coursework, I was studying anxiety and coping strategies already, and I’ve had some experience with that in my life.”
Anxiety in college students is more common than one may think, Comer said, and it’s important for students to have the tools to be proactive.
“The numbers show that one in five college students have had suicidal thoughts, and 39 percent of college students report experiencing anxiety or depression in the past year,” she said. “There’s more students that are seeking out mental health services, and we’re trying to remove this stigma that goes along with that.”
For more information, visit lamar.edu/redtalks.