{"id":119010,"date":"2020-10-29T13:21:58","date_gmt":"2020-10-29T12:21:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=119010"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:25:11","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:25:11","slug":"after-suffering-a-burn-out-alycia-founded-an-online-platform-to-help-students-deal-with-stress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2020\/10\/29\/after-suffering-a-burn-out-alycia-founded-an-online-platform-to-help-students-deal-with-stress\/","title":{"rendered":"After suffering a burn-out, Alycia founded an online platform to help students deal with stress"},"content":{"rendered":"

Alycia Colijn, who graduated last year, suffered severe stress-related issues in her fourth year at uni. She founded the BeatUs<\/a> platform to help other students deal with their issues and draws inspiration from her own experiences.<\/p>\n

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\u201cI noticed that many students focus on joining societies and becoming a board member right in their first year at uni,\u201d Alycia says about her time at Erasmus University. \u201cI automatically did the same thing. During my third year, I was on the board of the In Duplo study society, and after that I found I\u2019d taken on too much.\u201d The law and economics student suffered a burn-out at the end of her third year. She was tired and often irritable. \u201cSometimes you\u2019ll hear stories about people suffering a burn-out who suddenly collapse and are unable to do anything at all. For me, it was a much more gradual process. I did recognise the symptoms, but found myself thinking: it won\u2019t be as bad as all that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Towards the end of the year during which she served on a society\u2019s board she noticed that she was at the end of her tether. \u201cOnce I\u2019d passed the baton to the new board in June, I finally had a few months\u2019 rest. I really did as little as possible during those months. I\u2019d already passed most of my exams and I only had a few degree-related things left to finish.\u201d<\/p>\n

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During these quiet months, Alycia tried to regain her strength. In October, most students in her cohort embarked on their work placements. Alycia did, too. \u201cThat was a bad idea. I wasn\u2019t ready at all to get started again. I woke up feeling nauseous every morning and would skip breakfast, only to arrive at the place where I was doing my placement still feeling sick.\u201d Because everyone around her was moving ahead with their studies and work placements, she felt she had to do the same thing. \u201cThat was a bad decision. I should have taken a much longer break. If I\u2019d taken some more time off, I would have been better able to recover. I still feel sick when I\u2019m experiencing too much stress. Thankfully, I\u2019m much better at putting things into perspective now, so that doesn\u2019t happen too often anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n\t

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Student Wellbeing Week
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The university has its own Are you OK out there? <\/a>platform, through which it seeks to encourage students to make sure they are all right. Please refer to the site if you need help dealing with stress or loneliness, or if you have no motivation to study.<\/p>\n

From 1 to 6 November (inclusive), Erasmus University will organise the Student Wellbeing Week<\/a>. The entire week will be dedicated to students\u2019 mental health, and will feature events such as interesting webinars and yoga lessons.<\/p>\n\n\t<\/div>\n

In hindsight, Alycia is very sorry that she did not see a student therapist at the time. \u201cI badly underestimated my problems. Yeah, I was feeling a little stressed out. Aren\u2019t we all?\u201d It was not a subject that was often discussed by students. \u201cBut looking at how much we were doing, I don\u2019t think I was the only person to be stressed out. Just like many students who serve on the board of a society, I was sending emails all day, from morning to evening, and then we\u2019d spend the evening in a pub. Doing that for months on end, and working or studying on the weekends, can\u2019t be healthy. I just think that many students didn\u2019t quite exceed their own limits, like I did.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since at the time, not many people at universities (students or otherwise) talked about such issues, Alycia believes that many students didn\u2019t take their problems seriously. Everyone goes on studying and enjoying student life as they are supposed to. \u201cThese are your student days. Obviously, you want to join in all the activities.\u201d She feels that this is the greatest threat \u2013 students not being able to gauge when they are exceeding their limits. \u201cIt\u2019s absolutely crucial that you keep listening to your own body. I could tell that I was getting a little less happy, a little less energetic all the time. I should have done a better job listening to those signs.\u201d<\/p>\n\t

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Alycia’s 3 tips to students<\/strong><\/p>\n

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  1. Listen to your body
    \nWhile you go about your business, check every once in a while whether you are hunching your shoulders or clenching your teeth, and check your respiratory rate.<\/li>\n
  2. Find out what you want and who you are
    \nNothing wears you out like always trying out new things without understanding why you are doing them.<\/li>\n
  3. Know your own limits
    \nWhen you are a student, no one\u2019s life depends on what you do. So don\u2019t be afraid to focus on your own needs every once in a while.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

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    For this reason, she has now established the BeatUs platform. \u201cI gave a presentation at my study society in which I mentioned my stress-related issues. Several students came up to me and told me that it all sounded very familiar to them. Some said that it was great that someone had been brave enough to open up and discuss the subject.\u201d So that is BeatUs\u2019s purpose: to get students to talk. Particularly with each other, so that problems can be brought to light. \u201cOur greatest pitfall is definitely our tendency to underestimate problems. It\u2019s better to seek help early than to seek help late. [If you\u2019re exhausted], take a few more days off and don\u2019t get started again until you can tell you\u2019re OK. And another thing that is really important: listen to your body.\u201d<\/p>\n

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    Alycia herself is doing much better now. She joined KPN\u2019s Young Talent Program in September and is really enjoying it. \u201cIf there\u2019s one thing that causes people to be stressed out, it\u2019s doing things you actually don\u2019t like at all. Thankfully, I have been able to find something that really suits me.\u201d<\/p>\n

    Often students get stressed out because they are not quite sure what it is they want. \u201cOn top of the study-related stress, students tend to experience additional stress because they are not quite sure why they are doing the things they do.\u201d This, too, is something she focuses on on her website, called BeatUs-Students.nl. Among other things, the site offers a course on decision overload. \u201cIt\u2019s vital that you know what your key values are. That\u2019s one of the first things you should focus on. Once you know that, you will discover what matters to you and what you should be working towards. Once you\u2019ve made up your mind about that, you will automatically experience some mental peace and quiet, and making decisions will become a lot easier.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t

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