Most college students realize that stress and anxiety can take a toll on their nerves. What they might not realize is that it's also taking a toll on their hearts.
The Journal of the American College of Cardiology recently added chronic anxiety and stress to a list of psychological factors that increase the risk of heart attacks.
The list also includes anger, hostility and depression.
While triggers for stress can vary between individuals, there seems to be a trend of academic pressure that affects the majority of college students with anxiety issues, said Roberta S. Seldman, psychologist at UF's Student Mental Health Services.
"There is an extreme and unusually high need not to get a degree, but get straight A's," she said.
Todd Broder, a third-year psychology resident at Shands at UF, said that 30 to 40 years ago the expectation was just to graduate high school. Now graduating college and participating in master's or doctoral programs is expected.
While worrying about an assignment won't cause lasting damage, living in constant worry can quickly result in serious physical problems.
Seldman said panic attacks are the top physical issue she sees brought on by stress.
"Developing heart irregularity is also a big one," she added.
There also seems to be a cultural phenomenon in the U.S. that equates a certain amount of normalcy with stress, Seldman said. With the release of this information, cardiologists have started to examine both physiological and psychological aspects of a patient when deciding upon treatments.
Seldman said this will benefit overall patient care.
"We believe mind and body are one," she said. "There isn't a separation."
Students can learn to cope with stress and anxiety through programs offered by the university.
Student Mental Health Services offers both individual counseling and group courses.
Although there are plenty of programs available to UF students, Seldman said that participation levels are "terrible."
"We have 50,000 students at this university and maybe 15 in a class," she said.
She attributes the lack of involvement to low levels of publicity and university support.
"We're just Band-Aids," she said. "We clean up the mess."
