Here’s what I know for sure. Hour after hour, day after day, and week after week of studying, working, and STRESSING are a recipe for BURNOUT. As in poof, the flame is gone, no desire, no motivation, no purpose for crawling out of bed in the morning. Don’t let yourself get stuck in that place!
High school students lead active lives, and stress just comes with the territory. A little stress is a good thing – it keeps us on our paws. A lot of stress can lead to loss of sleep, feeling like we’re always in the doghouse, or finding ourselves at the bottom of a Dog Chow bag wondering whatever happened to our lives. Ok – maybe that’s just me.
Anyway, here’s what I do to decompress:
When I feel I’ve got too much on my plate (or in my dish), I’ve been known to go outside and kick the ball around for a while...
Unleash my creativity on the canvas...
Or just chill out with my friends...
None of these things make my obligations go away, but they do make them a little easier to stomach. And it helps me to work when it’s time to work and find time to chill to regenerate my brain cells and my spirit.
Have some pent-up energy you need to express? Take it outside! Go for a run, take a trip to the batting cage, grab a friend for a little one-on-one action on the basketball court.
Brain bogged down with one too many vocabulary words or mathematical equations? Stretch that grey matter in a different direction by curling up with a good book or picking up your guitar to just JAM!
Feeling overly anxious about that interview, acceptance letter, LIFE IN GENERAL? Talk about it! Your friends are experiencing the same worries you are right now and it helps when you know you aren’t facing the world alone.
The important thing to remember is: your high school years should be fun. You’re supposed to be making memories! Don’t get so carried away with the seemingly insurmountable task ahead of you of preparing for the rest of your life that you forget to enjoy today. Otherwise you’ll eventually reach tomorrow, look back, and all you’ll see is a long trail of textbooks, applications and essays. Choose instead to pave your road with experiences, friendships and good times. It’s amazing what a little balance can do to lighten your load.
A little work, a little play, a happy dog at the end of the day.
Woof,
Clyde
