Throughout all four years of high school, stress is an everpresent force. It is always hovering over the edge, waiting for the right moment to pop in and take over. Sometimes this stress builds up so much that it brings on feelings of suffocation and overwhelmedness, which can keep students from reaching their full potential.
While being highly involved in fine arts, athletics, and academics provides much reason for stress, many students also suffer from stress brought on by their life outside of school. Sienna Kadera-Redmond, 12, points out that, on top of all their senior-year worries, they feel stressed about things going on with her friends outside of school.
“I am really close with the people in my gardener youth group, and like eight of us were planning on going to homecoming together,” Kadera-Redmond said. They went on to describe issues their group is facing because of relationships within the group, and they said they feel as if they have to be the “peacemaker” within the group.
The culmination of these pressures drags students down, creating a need for an “outlet.” An outlet can be a variety of activities/strategies. Its official definition is “a means of expressing one’s emotions.” These tactics range anywhere from running to playing piano. Bailey Hawkins, 11, joined the “outlet” provided by the high school: the Stress Management Targeted Seminar. As a member of this seminar, Hawkins spent two days a week coloring in a quiet classroom for twenty minutes.
“It’s a good little break in the day,” Hawkins said. Outside of the seminar, Hawkins still occasionally colors when overwhelmed, as does Kadera-Redmond.
Although the seminar mainly focuses on this strategy, it also introduces students to a wide range of coping mechanisms. Hawkins mentions how important it is to be exposed to these options.
“As you get higher into high school and further into life and college, you get more and more stressed and have more stressors, so it’s good to know how to be able to handle it,” Hawkins said.
The Stress Management Targeted Seminar is open to all grades and recommended for anyone who is feeling any degree of stress. From panic-attacks to even the slightest twinge of overwhelm, everyone is welcome.
