Andrea Erikson, a junior in the College of Communication, has seen the effects of stress.

"I've seen people lash out at other people," she said. "I've known people who have gotten into fights, it wasn't that they hated each other, they were both just stressed."

The American College Health Association has also noticed the trend. According to a survey the group conducted in Spring 2004, 93.8 percent of students surveyed admitted to having felt overwhelmed at least once in the last year by all they had to do, and 29.2 percent of students said they had the feeling over 10 times in the last year.

Students listed stress as the biggest factor disrupting their academic abilities, with 32.4 percent of students saying stress hurt them.

According to Sharon Fisher, communication coordinator for the association, the numbers have remained consistent since 2000, when the group first did surveys.

Christopher Daood, assistant to the director in the Counseling Center, said the number of those stressed, while high, is not surprising.

"In fact, I'm surprised it's not a little higher." Daood said. He thought the stress rate has probably gone up in the last few years.

Students aren't surprised the rate of stress is so high. Expectations of college have pushed students' stress level higher.

Ashley Shipman, a freshman in the College of Health Sciences, is taking biology and chemistry classes this fall. The workload gets heavy with homework and tests, but she has been able to manage.

Daood said some stress can be attributed to the transition into college.

"Some don't know how hard academically it would be," he said.

But academic transitions are not the only difficult part of freshman year.

"I was aware of people who had roommate problems and switched roommates," Shipman said. "That makes it really hard."

She said her transition was "smooth, but the hardest part was planning time."

Other problems can raise the stress level. Erikson said she feels stressed when her apartment, which she shares with another person, isn't clean.

Another concern of the study was depression, which 18.9 percent of students reported they were suffering from. According to Fisher, the number of people who admitted being diagnosed with depression went up 4.6 percent since 2000.

Daood said that rate of depression was probably true. The high stress and anxiety rate, he said, can contribute to depression.

Slowing down may help high stress.

Daood said the stress level has become worse over the years.

"We live in a fast-paced, demanding society," Daood said.

Some of the best ways to relieve or avoid stress include trying to lessen the demands. According to Daood, time management helps to avoid many stress issues.

Erikson said she was able to reduce her stress.

"I usually try to get out of the situation," she said.

If it's homework, she takes a break, listens to music or goes out for a walk.

If things are difficult, finding mentors or peers will help students "figure out things." Students can always call the Counseling Center to talk to a person there, Daood said.