Stress is nothing funny. Up until high school, I had never undergone stress, nor have I ever realized how helpless and lost it can make a person feel. Those who have personally experienced stress can attest to the loss of control and permeating anxiety it can create. The IB Academy is a notoriously rigorous academy that expects far more from its students than other academies expect of theirs, creating large amounts of stress for IB students. For many IB students, stress can seem like a fixture of school life that keeps reinforcing itself with each passing month. Yet despite the complicated nature of stress, there are numerous simple ways to deal with it. Here are 3 tips on how manage all the stress that comes with being a student in the IB academy.
Exercise regularly: For some people, the word exercise often conjures up images of intense sweating and fast, powerful movements. However, exercise is far more than just intense workout sessions. Exercise can be as simple as taking a 30-minute walk around your neighborhood. Consistent exercise helps the body release endorphins that make you feel great afterwards and reduce the stress you have pent up inside. Additionally, exercise develops healthy habits that will improve mobility and flexibility as you grow.
Eat healthy: Believe me, eating healthy is not easy, many healthy foods tend not to be very tasty. Nutritious foods like almonds and dates, however, are not just scientifically proven to improve your wellbeing, they also make you personally feel better after eating them. I personally feel much better after eating nutritious foods instead of sugary foods in the morning. In some instances, my school-related stress reduces and allows me to do my homework more effectively throughout the day. I assure you, changing your eating habits to consume healthier, nutrient-rich foods will have a beneficial impact on, not just your stress levels, but your wellbeing as a whole.
Positive Self Talk: Let’s be honest, just about everyone talks to themselves whether it be out loud or, more typically, in our heads. Self-talk can be positive ("I can do this" or "Everything will be OK") or negative ("I'll never get better" or "I'm so stupid"). Negative self-talk increases stress and can lead you to become more unsure of yourself. Conversely, positive self-talk helps to calm you down and control school-related stress. By practicing on a regular basis, you can learn to shift moments of negative self-talk to positive ones. For example, you can try to say to yourself in the morning that “Today will be a great day” instead of “I am going to fail a test today.” The negative self-talk that we inject into our heads can only make our day worse and more stressful. Perhaps it is better to make a change and affirm ourselves with more positive self-talk since we are, after all, students of the most rigorous and high achieving academy of the school.