Issue date: 10/24/05 Section: Health

Media Credit: Submitted photo Sophomore Chris Colney meditates on the median of Clairemont Avenue amid the evening traffic. With the hectic college lifestyle, meditation is one way for students to relax and clear their minds of everything going on around them.

College is a time of life that's both an incredible and liberating experience, but it's also filled with a plethora of daily stressors. Tests, friends, significant others and the uncertainty of that little thing called the future are just a few of the daily trials that grace the consiousness of the average student.

High amounts of stress affect a person's immune system, said Nola Schmitt, associate professor of family health nursing who teaches the mind, body, and spirit wellness course. At times it seems like there is just no way to find any relief.

However, she said, that doesn't have to be the case. There are a variety of ways to help relieve stress in life, one of which is getting a professional massage.

"There are all kinds of benefits of massages," said Keith Beckstrom, a massage therapist at Crest Wellness Center. "It improves circulation, helps with relaxation, rids the body of toxins, eases stress and also helps alleviate minor ailments."

Several types of massages are offered at Crest for students, faculty, staff and their spouses, he said.

"You can get chair massages on site, which last 15 minutes, or you can get longer ones," Beckstrom said. "We do upper body, legs, arms and hands ... pretty much anything specific to what's ailing you."

He said massages are given throughout the day. Some people choose to come in the morning before classes and others choose to come in at night to wind down. Many athletes go in for both pre- and post-event massages, he said.

However, if the average college student is short on cash, there are other options they can try on their own, Schmitt said. One alternative is meditation.

"The use of meditation and relaxation affects all levels of health," she said. "It focuses on the idea of how the mind affects the body. It clears thinking (and) helps the person to become more focused and more able to deal with anxiety and even pain."

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