During the semester, you will learn about and experience a wide variety of activities designed specifically to help you both reduce and prevent stress. Examples of these include guided relaxation or breathing exercises, guided imageries, meditation, yoga, etc. You will also learn how to make better sense of the way your thoughts can lead to stress and effective ways of changing them. Examples include mindfulness, trust, living by our values, managing emotions, time management, etc. Many of these experiences you will have reflected on throughout the semester. This paper is an opportunity to reflect on all experiences collectively.
At the end of the semester, write a paper that summarizes your experience in class. The body of the paper includes a thorough discussion of your subjective experience of the class activities designed to help you manage and reduce your stress. Complete the paper by answering the following questions:
Which class activities and topics did you find most useful for you managing your stress and gaining a greater sense of inner peace? Why?
Which class activities and topics did you find least useful for you managing your stress and gaining a greater sense of inner peace? Why?
Which of the relaxation techniques did you find most enjoyable and why?
Which of the relaxation techniques did you find least enjoyable and why?
Describe a few ways that you have changed as a result of the knowledge and experiences of this class since the beginning of the semester. Include ways that your stress symptoms have changed (headaches, sleeping habits, irritability, etc.); ways you perceive things differently than before.
Which topics of the class and relaxation techniques do you plan to use in the future? Why?
The paper should be 3-4 pages, double-spaced, 12 pt. Times New Roman font with standard margins. Include a heading at the top of the first page with your name, the course, the title of the paper, and the date. This is a personal reflection paper; therefore, no references are required.
Quality of Work Requirements
Most assignments will ask you to include thoughtful, well-developed opinions or reflections. Fact-based assignments must be accurate, scientifically based, and appropriately referenced. Assignments must adequately answer the question. Answers cannot be copied directly from the text or other sources. Assignments submitted for credit must be the original work of a student currently enrolled in this course. All work must be written in formal academic language, free of spelling and grammar errors.
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
The use of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) is not permitted in this class. Any use of AI tools for work in this class may be considered a violation of the University of Southern Mississippi’s Academic Integrity policy. Your course instructor reserves the right to send any submitted work to AI detection software. The use of unauthorized AI tools will result in consequences deemed appropriate by the instructor and will be subject to the Academic Integrity Policy and the University of Southern Mississippi.
