The Community Service and Environmental Development Affairs Sector at the Faculty of Al-Alsun, at Ain Shams University, in cooperation with the Department of Eastern Islamic Languages (Persian Language Programme), organized a symposium entitled “Psychological Stress and how to Overcome Them,” within the framework of celebrating World Mental Health Day, under the patronage of Prof. Ghada Farouk, Acting President of the University, Prof. Salwa Rashad, Dean of the Faculty, and supervised by Prof. Youmna Safwat, Vice Dean of the Faculty for Community Service and Environmental Development Affairs, where, Dr. Salwa Riad, General Director of the Mental Health Department at Ain Shams Specialized Hospital, gave a lecture.

During her opening speech, Prof. Youmna Safwat, Vice Dean of the Faculty for Community Service and Environmental Development Affairs, said that the goal of the symposium is to raise awareness of the importance of managing stress and organizing time, and how to deal with stress more effectively, whether it is family, academic, societal, or other stress. In order to achieve a high degree of psychological balance, happiness, and satisfaction in life, she added that the sector aims, during its seminars, to preserve the mental health of students and raise their awareness of the most important social issues.

While Dr. Salwa Riyad confirmed that stress and burdens lead to anxiety or depression, especially anxiety about the future in youth.

She added that health anxiety is the natural anxiety that anyone experiences regarding an exam, for example, and it is anxiety that does not make a person stop and his motivations continue.

In the case of pathological anxiety, you find that the person tends toward isolation, pessimism, a sense of helplessness, and a sense of hostility. This anxiety requires seeking help from a specialist.

She pointed out that rushing to achieve results causes depression, as the ambiguous and unclear future causes anxiety for the person and is one of the most important causes of depression, explaining that achieving any goal goes through gradual stages and requires patience, perseverance, being honest with oneself, and not rushing the results.

She pointed to the sources of anxiety, which are internal stress and variables in the person’s external environment, noting that anxiety is the inability to predict the future and the lack of sufficient information about the new field. The person must continue to advance even with the lack of information and overcome the feeling of helplessness.

She continued her speech by presenting methods for dealing with anxiety, overcoming depression, and belief in the theory of determinism, perseverance, and patience in diligence during study or work. She stressed the importance of avoiding negative thoughts emanating from oneself or from negative people that affect a person’s psyche and cause him to become depressed and isolated.

She emphasized that fusion or rapprochement with society is one of the most important therapeutic methods that help in overcoming psychological stress. Human nature is that they are social beings, so social connections lead to psychological safety, with the importance of avoiding negative people. Sometimes negative people must be responded to, discussed, and their concepts corrected.

The symposium witnessed great interaction from students and answers to their inquiries regarding many of the problems they face in life, whether inside or outside the university campus. In conclusion, Prof. Youmna Safwat, Vice Dean of the Faculty for Community Service and Environmental Development Affairs, honored Dr. Salwa Riyad and presented her with a certificate of appreciation for her effective contribution to enriching the symposium.