With AP classes, exams every five weeks, and the arduous task of juggling extracurricular activities with home life, it’s no wonder stress is one of the leading health hazards in high school students today.

Of course, as students get older, the things stressing them out change. They no longer worry about where recess will be held, but start to get concerned about getting their first job, making the football or soccer team, and how they’ll pass that chemistry class.

“For me, it’s the struggle of having to juggle school with my personal life,” says junior Shonte Simpson. “Sometimes teachers act like there aren’t other things I have to do outside their class like pass seven other classes.”

  In fact, it wouldn’t be surprising that if any student at Mays were asked what stresses them most, it would be related to being forced to pass eight total classes in some way. 

  “I know they’re trying to prepare us for college by giving us the chance to work on time management with eight whole classes, but I doubt many people are even going to take eight classes in a college semester,” says junior Abigail Ross. “I heard the average is about four to five classes, and they’re spread out, like we might not take them every day.

True, Mays students don’t take the same eight classes everyday, and the system of having “A” and “B” day classes helps to space out the time students have to complete even the simplest homework assignment, but every student has encountered that period where more than a few classes hand out rigorous assignments expected to be turned in around the same time.

Tough Classes

“The worst was having Mr.  [Leon] Sanders in the ninth grade,” says junior Kelvin Williams. “He would give us a lab to do, something out of the book and a project. It would all be due on the same class period, so we’d have to do that and whatever work another teacher gave us.”

“It’s a lot to handle [the eight classes] when we have to deal with so much,” Simpson said. 

No doubt, the “so much” Simpson referred to would have to deal with the exams students take every five weeks, the EOCTs to prepare for, and most importantly, in every junior’s case, the GGT. Junior year is an important year for high school students in Georgia, considering the number of standardized tests they must take to determine how soon they graduate.

 One would think it’s the tests that stress students out the most, but for some, parents have a greater influence in the stress levels of their kids than a graduation test.

Parental Pressures

“My mom is always on me, making sure I pass my classes. She’s always checking on my grades,” junior Emani Mackey says.

“My mom’s always up at the school talking to teachers. I know she means well, but it’s really annoying, and I’m on edge the whole day because I know she’ll be up here in a few hours,’’

 As Mackey said, parents mean well, and want to see good grades. They want to be able to relax, knowing that their children are excelling inside and outside of the classroom. However, with parents pressuring their kids to do well in school and extracurricular activities, they’re adding to the factors that can lead to a completely stressed out teenager. 

In fact, the simple reality is that many parents don’t think their kids are stressed. Sure, they don’t have to deal with paying bills and keeping a home in order while raising children, but adults must be conscious of the fact that just because today’s youth aren’t having to deal with the same pressures they deal with on a daily basis that doesn’t mean kids don’t have their own stream of tension.

There’s no need to worry, though. Although there are plenty things in a teenager’s daily life that can stress them out, there are ways that high school students can relieve stress to prevent any of the negative side effects, which include paranoia, lack of sleep, headaches and even depression.

Easing The Tension

“The main way I relieve stress is by listening to music. It helps me calm my nerves down because I don’t pay attention to anything but the lyrics, the beat, and the music,” says junior Marquez Hall. 

“I also like to sit alone in my room and do absolutely nothing. But I only do this when I am really upset about something and can’t take it anymore.” 

Alone time eases anxiety, Hall said.

“The darkness and quietness of the room gives me time to think about what has happened and how it can be solved,” he said.

Hall is on the right track when it comes to relieving his stress with music. According to Psych Central, because music has an emotional link, it proves to be an effective stress reliever. 

“Really loud music and dancing around like I’m crazy helps me get over whatever’s stressing me out,” said freshman, Makeda Phillips said.

Activities such as singing, dancing, and listening to music are all ways to get rid of anxiety.  Singing in loud voices or participating in karaoke can reduce tension and be fun.

However, when people get to the point of extreme stress, they are less likely to listen to music or sing songs because such action doesn’t get much accomplished, and when someone is stressed, the best option to resort to is taking action. 

According to Liberty Sports Magazine, sports and other physical activities can also help reduce stress. Many will describe the release of endorphins from exercise as a natural high and one of the best stress relievers known to man. In addition to helping cope with stress, physical activities can help one achieve a better night’s sleep, which will help people control their stress levels.

The main thing high school students should know about stress is how to deal with it. Of course, the workload won’t stop coming and there won’t ever be any extra hours in the day for you to complete your assignments, but that doesn’t mean the only action you have to resort to is pulling your hair out in frustration. 

One way of coping is find out what exactly is stressing you out, look at how you handle the stressful moments, avoid unnecessary stress, do what you can to change the situation to be in your favor, and relax.

With these steps, teenagers everywhere should be on their way to keeping their anxiety down to healthy levels and living carefree lives.