In today’s fast-paced society, escaping from stress seems near impossible. From tight deadlines to eight-hour shifts and everything in between, it’s easy to become overwhelmed and exhausted. However, with the right strategies and habits, it’s fairly attainable to achieve and manage a healthy balance between everything you might have on your plate.
Stress is the body’s reaction to a challenge or demand, and in small doses, stress can be beneficial to provide focus, energy, and motivation. However, when stress becomes too frequent, it can take a mental and physical toll on our wellbeing. According to the Mental Health Foundation, negative stress is triggered by something that threatens our sense of self or when we feel we have little control over a situation.
When we encounter this stress, we produce excess amounts of cortisol, which is the primary stress hormone in the body. The increase in these cortisol levels can cause a variety of reactions that look different for each individual.
“If I were to put the student body of Portsmouth High School on a scale of one to five, with one being profusely stressed daily and five being not stressed at all, I would put them at a two or a three,” says Laurie Relinski of the Guidance Department at PHS.
“I would like to implement more support and offer strategies for students struggling with stress management and lack of balance to prepare them for the world after high school,” she adds.
To create balance in your life and reduce stress, it’s important to discover your triggers. For some, it may be running late, and for others, it may be taking on too many responsibilities and commitments. Once you can decipher your main stressors, you can begin implementing techniques to avoid triggering yourself, according to the Mental Health Foundation.
Additionally, learning how to effectively prioritize your tasks can organize everything you need to get done in order of importance. Focusing your energy on checking off the critical responsibilities allows you to use your time efficiently. Taking ten minutes each morning to prioritize for the day based on urgency and significance will dial back the stress and leave you feeling motivated and structured.
Mood-boosting techniques are a niche strategy that can uplift one’s energy to increase motivation and overall happiness, says Mental Health America. Deep breathing can create a sense of tranquility while listening to your favorite song can put a smile on your face. Mood-boosting techniques can be unique to every individual, so it’s important to try out different methods to find one that works best for you.
One of the most crucial aspects of balancing your life is practicing self-care. Exercising, reading, spending time with loved ones, and meditating are all practices of self-care that act as a reset button to better handle whatever life throws at you. When we take the time to replenish ourselves, we show up as more patient, focused, and resilient people in the face of stressors and balance.
Based on recent results from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 79.3% of PHS students spend more than three hours a day on a screen. The recommended recreational screen time for teenagers is no more than two hours. Technology can often serve as a distraction for many, and the constant notifications, the trap of doom scrolling, and online rabbit holes can prevent us from being productive.
When asked if she believes she manages her time well, Avery Romps, a participative senior at PHS, says, “No. I get distracted and I go on my phone.”
In addition, the blue light exposure from devices can alter our sleep cycles when used at night. That lack of quality sleep–eight to ten hours– can throw off our energy and motivation, leaving us struggling to balance our lives properly. Although it sounds basic, getting enough rest is truly important to handle a day’s worth of stress and tasks.
After interviewing students from each grade at PHS, it was evident that those with healthy tactics to tame their stress and balance their lives had lower stress levels than those who struggled to distribute their time evenly.
Brooks Connors, an involved junior at Portsmouth claims that his stress level is–on average–a 1.5. “I get my assignments done while I am in school to make time for my other commitments and I think managing my time well plays a big role in my low-stress level,” says Connors.
Furthermore, Reagan Lawton, a freshman at Portsmouth claims that her stress level is about a four. “I do think I’m stressed out every day, but I try to manage that and balance my life by taking breaks, working out, and holding myself accountable for the things I need to get done,” says Lawton.
Ultimately, finding an equilibrium in the chaos of everyday life is an ongoing journey and practice, not a final destination. Although stress is an inevitable part of the human experience, there are plenty of ways to manage it and channel that stress into a motivator to stay productive to balance out our lives.
