How To Handle High School Stress
Shifra Steinberg
You need a certain amount of stimulation just to get out of bed and go to school. But how much is too much? Stress can take control of you unless you take control of it. High school can be stressful for anyone. Some stress pushes you to meet goals by studying more, working harder or sticking with a challenging task. However, sometimes this stress reaches an unhealthy level that can prevent you from functioning well and meeting these goals that you are stressing about in the first place. Whether it's your parents pushing you, your teachers criticizing you for a less-than-stellar test score, or your own drive to get in to the college of your dreams, academic pressure can get the best of you if you don't learn how to deal with it properly. So what can be done to prevent, or at least lessen, these feelings of stress? Here are five tips to get you started:
1.
Doesn’t it feel like your mind creates a case when you feel like you cannot finish a project in time or cannot finish studying for a test you have the next day? So, when you think about these negative ideas, find counter-thoughts that can combat these. Think instead of ways that you can finish studying for your test or finish your project instead of ways in which you can’t.
2.
I am not saying that you should become a slacker. However, lowering your goals just a little bit can help to relieve stress and boost your academic success. So instead of only being satisfied with the highest grade in the class, set a goal that is realistic to your standards, and be happy with your results.
3.
This sounds very unappealing, and many of us have a hard time doing this. However if you want to battle your fears, and thus your stress, you have to face them. Avoidance is at the heart of all anxiety. The trick is to reframe fear and face it before it devolves into a state of panic, which shuts down the part of the brain responsible for rational thinking.
4.
We tend to learn through imitation. Look to others who successfully manage their times and get work done more efficiently and effectively, and ask them for advice. If this advice is appealing to you, try it out for yourself.
5.
Our brains are interconnected with our emotions and facial expressions. When people are stressed, they often hold a lot of the stress in their face. So laughs or smiles can help relieve some of that tension and improve the situation.