Wellbeing @ Selby High - Stress Awareness

Coping with Stress

Stress is something we will all experience in our lives, however, there are any number of reasons why we may feel under pressure at different times. This pressure can sometimes be helpful, keeping us focused and helping us complete tasks. For young people, this may happen because of schoolwork, difficulties at home or problems with friends.

Sometimes, however, stress can start to feel overwhelming, especially when lots of pressures happen at the same time or last for a long period. When this happens, it can affect how we think, feel and behave, making everyday challenges feel much harder to manage. Understanding what causes your stress and learning simple ways to reduce it can help prevent stress from building up and improve your overall wellbeing.

Five Ways to Wellbeing

From what young people told us it is clear that there are many different ways that they cope in stressful situations. Things that may work for one person don’t always work for another. Some young people said that exercising helps, some young people felt that their own situation made it difficult to do things, whilst others were unsure.

In 2014 The Children’s Society and the New Economics Foundation (NEF) worked together to find out what children and young people can do to support their own wellbeing. This led to them coming up with the Five Ways to Wellbeing:

Take notice, Connect, Be active, Be creative, Keep learning.

View the 'Young Peoples Wellbeing Guide to Stressful Situations' below to learn more about about each of these.

Young People's Wellbeing Guide:

Healthy Coping Skills - click to open a printable file:

Stress Bucket - click to open file:

How Does Stress Feel Worksheet - click to open a printable file:

My 'SEE' Chart - click to open file:

Big Emotions Toolbox - click to open printable file:

Top tips for managing stress and preventing burnout

The following section offers six practical tips and pieces of advice on how you can manage stress and prevent burn out at school.

Tip 1 - Plan your time

This is really important for your productivity and self-care. Each week allocate time to address your learning requirements because it can be a huge benefit when your deadlines, assessments or exams arrive.

Tip 2 - Keep track of objectives

Sometimes this can be tough. Be gentle with yourself about it – create an action plan. Making sure you are up to date with your work, for example, will help to ensure you progress on programme in the long run. Keep track of your objectives and mark these off as you go along.

Tip 3 - Give it your best shot!

Challenge yourself to complete the work you find most difficult first.

If you are not sure – ASK!

• Practice where you can.

• Review and revise.

• Keep calm, keep talking!

Tip 4 - Ask for help

None of us are superhuman. We all get tired and overwhelmed. Reach out if you need to. Your tutors, teachers, trainers and support staff are all here to help you and if there’s something else impacting you or your learning, let them know about it so they can help.

Tip 5 - Eat and sleep well

Sleep reduces stress and anxiety levels – fact!

• Implementing a routine (as boring as it sounds) will help promote good sleep ahead of any assessments.

• Avoid those stimulants that feel like "quick fixes" such as sweets, energy drinks, chocolate, illegal drugs – they won’t quite be the friend you think they are.

Tip 6 - Learn calming strategies for self-care

Learning how to stay calm when feeling stressed will enable you to perform to the best of your ability.

Experiment with breathing or calming strategies and pick something that’s a best fit for you.

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