Students learn to cope with stress

Emily Wilson-Quayle, Staff Reporter

Stress: a feeling that high school students are extremely familiar with, regardless of grade or age. With the rise of mental health awareness, acknowledging stress is a step that many consider necessary to address anxiety and mental health as a whole. Many seniors at Madison are currently applying to college and find the process to be incredibly stressful. According to the American Psychological Association, the average high school student is more stressed than the average adult. The combination of school, social lives, and the media have hit teenagers with unreasonable expectations, causing stress to skyrocket across the country.  

“School makes me really stressed but I’m working on handling it better,” Samantha Van Demark (’18) said. “I tend to destress by drawing and spending time with my dogs. I usually put the TV on in the background for some noise and I draw for hours. I basically draw whatever I like, and right now I’m working on comics. When I’m not doing art, I take my two dogs Jude and Lucy on long walks through Nottoway Park. The fresh air clears my mind and I just put in my earbuds and listen to Kanye on repeat,”            

Experts warn that increased levels of stress can lead to a degraded immune system and advise teens to find outlets for their stress, whether it is through exercise or developing a healthy sleep schedule. Students need to find a balance that benefits their mental health while maintaining  their grades and responsibilities.

“Right now, applying to college is making me really stressed. To destress I like going on walks with my neighbor. The other day we went to this frozen pond and it was really cool. We normally like going to Nottoway Park to explore the area,” Hania Abboud (’18) said. “As a school it’s really important that we focus on positive ways to deal with stress and have healthy habits. I’m really thankful that FCPS changed the school time to 8:10 so I’m able to sleep in more which really helps, I can’t imagine having to be in class at 7:20 everyday!”