Stress and Anxiety

Stress

What is stress?

Stress is the body's response to challenges both good and bad.

Impacts are both physical, emotional, cognitive and behavioural.

Not just impacting on your study and marks but also things like how you interact with your friends and family and who you become as a person.

So it is important to learn to recognise how you are coping with stress and to have the tools and skills to be able to manage it.

On the flip-side you don't need to be feeling stressed at all to be proactive to reach out for support. Life is a bunch of stressors one after another so teachers and other professionals can help you learn and understand any changes in your life and how best we can manage them for future!

What stress can look like:

Not too sure if you are feeling stressed or not? Try this quiz to find out and reach out to the wellbeing team via the referral system for extra support on how we can help you manage it!

For all your needs the first and best point of contact is your year advisor but you can also reach out to the school counsellor or SSO.

This can be done in person and virtually using the referral system in your Year's google classroom and Sentral.

The referral form will contact your year advisor so then we can arrange the most appropriate support for you.

Types and intersection of stressors is also important to consider and can help us arrange tailored support for you.

Some types of stressors include:

  • Academic stress

  • Social or friend related

  • Bullying

  • Eating and exercise related

  • Sleep issues

  • Time management

  • Family, housing or bereavement

  • Substance or behaviour related issues (eg. smoking, gaming )


What you can do in the meantime once you've reached out for support:

  • Get plenty of sleep - sleep helps keep your brain ready to learn new things and process anything you've already learned or are going through.

  • Have a stress 'outlet' - something to focus on that is not related to your stressor eg. sports, meeting friends you can also check out the activities page linked.

  • Journal or write a diary - this will help you think about and understand what and why you are feeling.

  • Practicing some relaxation and mindfulness - teaching your brain to switch off and take a break is important not just now but in future so try to make a habit of it. You can find some relaxation and mindfulness techniques on the activities or mindfulness page.

  • Talk to someone - one of the best ways to reduce stress but also keep in mind not everyone you talk to is a professional in managing stress or your situation so think about chatting with a professional.

Anxiety

What is Anxiety?

Anxiety is the bodies response to stress. It is normal and can include physical symptoms such as butterflies and increased heart rate as well as cognitive processing behaviours such as ruminating.

When does it become a problem?

Anxiety is only a problem if it becomes more extreme in intensity and duration. This could impact your daily functioning by causing:

  • sleeping problems

  • difficulty breathing

  • issues performing daily tasks

  • impaired judgement

What can you do?

Anxiety is a normal thing but it is important to equip yourself with the tools and skills to manage anxiety even under stressful situations. So it is important to start building healthy habits now.

This is a life skill and currently relevant in school situations when dealing with study or exam stress or even social stress. However, in the long term proper management can help you make overall better decisions and assist in the development of other critical soft skills such as self-confidence and esteem.

For any assistance acquiring these skills and information regarding any of these please feel free to reach out to teachers, year advisors and any of the wellbeing staff in the support button below.

What to expect when you reach out for support

There is nothing wrong with reaching out for support! You don't always go to the dentist knowing you have a cavity and you don't always walk out knowing you had one after all. Support is preventative as much as it can help you during and after an event or stressor has occurred.

When you reach out for any support we will always respect you and listen to you. We we will likely arrange extra support such as appointments and check-ins with the relevant teachers and school supports and teach you tools and skills to manage whatever you are reaching out to us about.

So the takeaway from this is that we are here for you its just about when and who you want to reach out!

Burnout

If you find other helpful resources or have further ideas on how we can support you please let us know