Music fills coffee shops, malls, and headphones, but on campus, university students are using it as a coping tool to manage their stress and anxiety.
Video: Calgary Journal reporter Caley Carmichael explains anxiety and how music helps
About 60 per cent of university students are affected by anxiety, according to Universities Canada, which is roughly every third in five students.
Anxiety can be brought on by a large variety of things, from tests, presentations, running late, or even something as small as an unexpected phone call.
Music has been shown to significantly reduce anxiety, especially when listening to genres such as pop, classical, instrumental, and jazz.
Nate Young, a student at MRU, uses music to distract himself from anxious thoughts and focus on his assignments.
“No matter how anxious I’m feeling or how often I’m feeling anxious, I know that my music is always available and I can go listen to it whenever, so it definitely helps get rid of some stress and negate a lot of oncoming waves of it,” he said.
Other students at MRU use different coping strategies to help reduce their anxiety, which include praying, socializing, and staying organized.
However, sometimes these coping skills aren’t enough, and extra resources are needed.
MRU’s counselling services are available and free for all students to access if they need extra help coping with their anxiety and stress.