Anxiety is a major problem among students today. With students facing pressure to succeed from their parents and teachers, a simple test can be an incredibly monumental task. Additionally, at the high school level, students have social matters and jobs to worry about. Coping with anxiety is a skill that one must learn and doing it effectively can be an essential life skill.
The first and most obvious solution is to avoid the things that make one anxious. If a person can put physical distance between them and the source, they can negate the stress. The issue with this technique is that very often, the things that cause someone the most stress are critical things that can’t be avoided.
In a stressful situation, someone’s first reaction is often a flight response that will simply try to remove themselves from the situation. Still, because of the inability to get too far away, the thing continues to stress them out because the problem does not go away. Another common response is the fight response, in which one dives head first into whatever makes them anxious. While this works to a degree, it can lead to reckless actions with long-term negative consequences. The final response would be freeze, in which an individual just shuts down and cannot do anything.
Although people may experience these responses to varying degrees, avoiding them is important for staying on track and focused. The first common coping mechanism is to pause and take five deep breaths in a 4 step pattern: inhale, hold, exhale, hold. You can vary the time spent on each section based on personal physicality, but it should be the same length of breath across all sections. While simply breathing seems insignificant, concentrating on inhalation and exhalation can greatly reduce cortisol levels associated with flight, fight, and freeze responses. It also gives an individual a moment to think about their situation and plan out their next move because, while under the influence of extreme anxiety, one can feel very out of control in their own life. This planning can help reduce stress.
Another contributing factor to stress is sleep quality and quantity. Because teens often have irregular sleep schedules, they may experience more extreme stress from tiny situations due to mental fatigue. Ensuring that one is well-rested can significantly reduce one’s anxiety and other mental problems, such as depression. Having a regular bedtime routine can help you maintain a regular sleep schedule. Additionally, removing all electronics 30 minutes before bed can ensure that your circadian rhythm doesn’t get messed up.
Finally, social anxiety is an essential issue to understand because it is hard to cope with, and with the introduction of social media, it has become increasingly prominent. Coping with this sort of anxiety can be done by the strategies above, but it is important to remember that social media increases stress. People often turn to their phones as a form of flight response, but this is mainly detrimental to someone. Instead, an individual should try to do some other activity, specifically ones that they enjoy but require thought and attention and are relaxing. Some suggestions are things like knitting, solving puzzles, and reading.
Anxiety is something that, only recently, has come into the spotlight. Left unchecked, it can negatively impact someone’s life, but learning proper coping strategies can help one overcome this challenge.
