Strategies for Stress

 

Covid has brought out a lot of stress in all of us.  While I would not encourage people to look for additional stressors, there are ways to handle stress that can be beneficial instead of harmful.

As we approach the halfway point of the school year, many students are facing midterms, which can be stressful.  In one research study, a group of students was told to think of stress as helpful—that breathing harder got more oxygen to your brain, that stress made you more focused, and that people who thought stress was good for them performed better on exams.

The control group was told what many teachers say to their students: Relax, take a deep breath, you will be okay.  The group that thought stress was helpful outperformed the group that was told to relax.  When you are preparing for your next exam, remember that the stress response is helping you maximize your achievement.

The second strategy is to form a t-chart.  On the left side of the chart, list all the stressors that you have in your life.  On the right side of the chart, list the resources you have to handle those stressors.  As educators, we want to be on the right side of our student’s charts, but I suspect we often slip onto the left side.  It is important to realize that while you have stressors, you also have resources that can help you handle that stress.

Thirdly, realize that you are not the only one going through these stressful times.  People often feel that admitting they are overwhelmed or stressed out is a sign of weakness.  The truth is that many of us are going through the same thing but might be doing a better job hiding it.

Is it easy to change your mindset about stress?  Is it easy to ask for help and use your resources?  The answer for many of us is no.  It is hard work to change mindsets.  What we have to strive to do is the hard right thing instead of the easy wrong one.

The challenge for all of us is to reach out for help when we need it and, of course, to be there to help those who are in need.