As summer winds its way to a close and school begins again, many high school students are immediately thrown into the deep end of juggling an ever-increasing workload, a part-time job, and numerous athletics and extracurriculars.
Up Next: How Stress Affects The Way You Think & How To Cope
With this immediate increase in stress, managing the pressures that begin to mount up is often challenging. However, there are a few ways to deal with the school time stress healthily.
Stick To A Schedule
The first step that I take when managing stress is always to develop a coherent schedule. When I plan out what I need to do and when I need to do it, it helps me make sense of everything I need to do. Making a simple list of what I need to do for the week helps me step outside of my stress. Instead of letting my difficulties sit in my head, writing them all down gives me a way to objectively view what I need to do and manage my time effectively.
Although objectively considering what I need to do often helps reduce the stress of the unknown, it cannot wholly eliminate the simple focus of having little free time to use as I want. Dealing with this kind of stress is difficult but not impossible.
Get Enough Exercise
One of the best ways to manage mental stress is exercise. Anything like lifting weights, swimming, running, or even just riding a bike for a few minutes can help to improve your mood. Doctors agree that exercising is one of the best ways to relieve stress. If exercise isn’t your favorite pastime, there are other ways of improving your mood.
Another popular way to alleviate stress is listening to music. Many people, including myself, find that listening to their favorite music is an easy way to improve their mood. This method also benefits not taking away any additional time from an already busy schedule. You can listen to music in the car while doing homework or doing virtually any activity one might have. While this may seem trivial and would have no impact, listening to music is an effective and efficient way to boost your mood.
Get In Those Zzzzzs
Finally, one of the most important ways of relieving stress is to get sound sleep. Many teens live up to the infamous stereotype of being sleep deprived, but this is one of the main reasons anxiety and stress are so common in our age group. When feeling overwhelmed, nothing helps more than sleeping, even if only for a few minutes. Just a short nap can help to refresh your brain and reset your emotions. It may seem impossible to spare enough time to slow down and rest, but its benefits more than make up for the time it takes.
Be sure to put away your phone so you’re not tempted to scroll while laying in bed!
Stress is one of the most common themes of being a high school student. At times, it may seem that its grip is impossible to shake, but it is possible to reduce the anxiousness that many teenagers feel. The most important thing to remember above all is that the things that are stressing you are not as important as they seem- no matter how crucial the things stressing you may appear, it is always more important to remain healthy. Taking active steps to reduce stress is extremely important and should not be neglected, most of all because you are worth it.
At Birthright, mastering stress management is one of the many ways our professional counselors support the mental health of and empower those we serve. If you need a pregnancy test or looking for support, don’t hesitate to call or text us today! Walk-ins welcome.
