Stress is a word most students have heard a lot in their school career. Stress is also something that most students have experienced themselves at one point or another.

In a study conducted by the American Psychological Association on average teenagers have reported being more stressed than adults making stress a common factor between many students. 

Freshman and ASB student Rinnah Ferrer noticed her peers experiencing school-related stress, “High school can be filled with a lot of people who are stressed over the same thing homework and like people in general.” Ferrer also says that students can get stressed over things that don’t need to be stressful, “like homework assignments when they take too long I get so worried that like it’s super-duper important when it’s really just homework.” 

Stress may be a common factor in high school yet most students don’t like to admit when they are feeling overwhelmed. 

 “There sometimes is a perception that we should just be able to handle stuff on our own and be able to figure it out also self-advocacy,” School counselor Elizabeth Martin says, “learning how to ask for help is not always a skill that people learn it’s a lot of the time a skill that people are still learning into adulthood.”

While not all stress is entirely bad, it is good to know the symptoms of too much stress and the consequences of chronic stress. 

Dr. Tolles of Silverdale Primary Care has a thing or two to say about chronic stress, “[Chronic stress] leads to stress eating, stress lowers melatonin so sleep quality is poor and so the teenagers are not getting enough sleep during the week, that’s one of the reasons. So it affects a lot of different hormones and chemicals in a bad way,” he says. 

There are many different ways for students to reduce the amount of stress they face. Counselor Elizabeth Martin says that one way is to talk to someone you trust, such as a counselor or a family member. Exercise is another great way to get your body back to the right rhythm.

She also says talking to a teacher and letting them know that you are feeling overwhelmed can make things better. No matter the way stress is affecting your life it is always good to seek help in managing it so matters don’t become worse.