Coping unhealthily: a contradiction?
Healthy and unhealthy coping skills
As the rush of midterm exams gives way to the chill of early winter, students and workers alike are shouldering multiple deadlines and overly long nights. It’s that time of year when it’s easy to feel isolated and stretched thin, whether heading to work before dawn or battling assignments after dark.
Stress follows people everywhere, and the hardships of daily life exhaust people to such a degree that it leads to burning out, even to anxiety. During this process lies the opportunity to investigate how people build the resilience and grit to overcome that stress.
Acquiring coping mechanisms becomes important as how one responds to stress affects mental, emotional, and physical health. Even though everyone has coping mechanisms, it is not guaranteed that all of them are helpful or healthy. Unhealthy coping mechanisms can create a vicious cycle of stress and fatigue, while healthy coping mechanisms equip us to face stress with more energy, clarity, and resilience.
Coping skills are the behaviours that one relies on to manage stress. These strategies can range from exercise and creative outlets to relying on substance use to avoid responsibilities and seek quick gratification.
Some might find these coping mechanisms healthy, but they are only short-term fixes and can become unhealthy when overdone. Someone might find one coping skill healthy, and another could find the same one unhealthy. For instance, working out could be healthy for one person, but a different person who works out too often might recognize it as the beginning of an unhealthy coping skill.
Recognizing patterns in life and how to deal with them is the first step in building a toolkit of effective and sustainable ways to cope with and manage stressful situations.
Some healthy coping mechanisms include mindfulness and meditation, physical activity, creative outlets, and seeking support from local resources. The University of Regina’s (U of R) Student Health Clinic provides counselling services tailored to student needs, from stress management techniques to one-on-one therapy sessions.
Additionally, mental health apps like BetterHelp and Talkspace allow users to connect with licensed therapists online, making professional support accessible to those with busy schedules. People also tend to fall back on their friends to talk through stress.
University students have the unique opportunity to join different groups, clubs, and organizations to form connections and find supportive communities. Online groups and virtual meetups can also offer social support for those who can’t meet in person.
Mindfulness helps one focus on the present moment, letting go of anxieties about the future and the past. Apps like Headspace and Calm offer guided meditations which help ease tension, making mindfulness a more accessible habit.
Creative outlets include indulging in art, poetry, or even writing. Creative endeavours help to take a break from reality in a world that’s easier to control. They allow one to process complex emotions in a way that feels fulfilling and restorative.
Physical exercise and activities in that realm can be a powerful stress reliever. Moving one’s body releases endorphins, which help improve and reduce feelings of anxiety and depression.
Whether it’s a brisk walk, a yoga session, recreational sports, or an intense workout, finding a type of movement you enjoy can make this a go-to coping strategy. At the U of R, students can access the gym and also explore going to fitness classes through URFit.
On the other hand, to get temporary relief or distraction from difficult emotions, people might see themselves indulging in unhealthy coping mechanisms. According to charliehealth.com, “Unhealthy coping mechanisms are characterized by their ineffectiveness in promoting emotional well-being and their potential to exacerbate distress. They often perpetuate a cycle of negative emotions and contribute to a worsening of the situation.”
Drug use as a way to numb emotions is an unhealthy coping mechanism as it might lead to addiction, physical health problems, and worsening mental health. Apart from drugs, people might also rely on alcohol to cope with stress and difficult emotions. This can lead to dependence, impaired judgement and multiple health issues.
Even food can be used as a source of comfort or distraction from emotional distress, potentially leading to struggles relating to weight, an unhealthy diet, and an unhealthy relationship with food.
To add healthy coping mechanisms into one’s list of coping skills is a gradual process. It will take lots of trial, error, and adaptation. Starting small to gradually transition towards a healthy state is more sustainable than cutting out unhealthy coping skills entirely. For instance, adding a five-minute breathing exercise to one’s morning, a short walk after lunch, or blocking off time in the evening strictly for yourself.
Journaling or keeping notes of one’s feelings can help one’s brain process the day’s activities and difficult situations. Note any improvements in your mood, sleep quality, and energy levels. Ultimately, being kind to oneself and practicing self-compassion makes it easier to cope. Affirmations of “I am becoming…” or “I am…” could also be used as journal prompts.
As we move deeper into winter, taking steps to assess and build on our coping strategies becomes essential. Stress may be inevitable, but the way we respond to it has the power to shape our well-being in positive, lasting ways. Whether you’re a student facing a round of finals and juggling work or just an average Joe dealing with life and all its challenges, coping skills will help sort through the stress and find solutions.
The journey to healthier coping is not in ridding ourselves of stress but in constructing ways to deal with it so that it does not overwhelm us. Create an individualized approach to dealing with stress, including community resources, mental health services, and self-help tools that will allow one to thrive, especially during challenging times in life.
