Written by Journalism Staff Reporter Jayden Lopez
As high schoolers, we are prone to stress. Stress from quizzes, tests, homework, and on top of that, most of us are involved in sports and other extracurricular activities. How you manage your stress determines how well you perform doing these everyday tasks. Letting the stress build up causes more harm than good, but there are always ways to relax yourself. You just have to find what works best for you.
Getting outside is a great stress reliever. Letting your body absorb vitamin D, which most humans are deficient in, helps in more ways than one. You could go on a ten-minute walk around your neighborhood or just sit outside on your patio for a few minutes; anything helps. Seeing the sun and getting out into nature causes mental restoration, boosts immune function, and overall improves emotional and physical well-being.
When we are overwhelmed, the last thing we are thinking about is how we should treat our bodies, but taking this into consideration could be very beneficial. Eating a well-balanced diet and getting enough exercise improves cognitive abilities, mood, and overall health. Try eating plenty of fruits and vegetables, which are rich in essential vitamins and nutrients that help our bodies function correctly. Add a 30-minute daily work out on top of that, and you’re on your way to success. The primary stress hormone, cortisol, is constantly putting our bodies into overdrive, so taking care of your health could help regulate your levels.
When you feel stress creeping up on you, one of the best methods of managing it is to take deep breaths. Closing your eyes and inhaling for few seconds and then releasing it helps your brain maintain focus on one thing and lowers your heart rate. If you are really stressed, five- or ten-minute guided meditations could be useful. Spending a few minutes of your time trying to lower your heart rate and cortisol levels could make you even more productive than you were before.
High schoolers are known to have questionable sleep schedules, and these sleep schedules are contributing to your stress whether you notice it or not. When you sleep, your brain is working to auto regulate itself and bring your body back to homeostasis. Sometimes getting the recommended eight to nine hours of sleep at night is hard, but just having a consistent sleeping schedule helps. Try to wake up and go to bed at the same time, or close to it, for a week and see how that affects you. If you are feeling anxious or stressed, fixing your sleeping habits could alleviate those feelings.
There are many other ways to de-stress your mind that are not confined to this list, so I encourage you to look for ways that you think might be more beneficial or practical to your life.
