With the ongoing pandemic, it is safe to say that all of our stress levels have been at an all-time high. 

As a current student at Agua Fria High School, I can say stress has been common throughout my years here. Whether it’s assignment due dates, personal issues, school events. Stress as a student is all too common and I think there are many different things that can cause someone stress. 

Mind lists several causes for stress, including having big changes, worrying about someone, being under lots of pressure, and having huge or a lot of responsibilities. We could all relate to a few of these, or at least one of them.

These are all stressors that can cause a person to lose motivation, feel sad, and/or lonely. I mention lonely because if you’re always working on schoolwork or work in general you’ll always be constantly thinking about it. This could lead to you not being able to balance work and your social life, which some can argue is just as important if not more important.

In my opinion, some of the people who have to do a lot of balancing with their lives are student-athletes. A clear example of this would be current senior at Agua Fria Samantha Lopez, who has taken part in the track and soccer teams while having picked up being the editor for our OwlFeed sports section.

All of that seems like it would take a toll on someone.  Balancing personal and school life can be hard. “It was a huge readjustment for me,” Samantha said. “I realized I had to find a good time balance that was right for me.” 

When she mentioned the time balancing act she had to do, it really put into perspective for me how much more stress I would be in if I was in her situation. 

Samantha often feels like the responsibility of managing her time has helped her stay organized in other areas and be precise as well. “ I feel like I have to do everything spot on just to save on time, so I can do my tasks well and not have to worry about doing things a second time,” she said. 

Dealing with stress can often be a bit of a complicated process for some people. It used to be this way for me but over time I learned of ways to help myself and just take my mind off things.

One of the most common things I do when I am under stress is just taking a step back and looking at my situation because most of the time I let myself overreact to what is going on around me. This is useful because it serves as a bit of a reality check and can also let you understand the situation better.

Another thing I often do as well is doing things that I know I enjoy, for example, drawing, talking to people, or putting on my favorite songs. Just doing small comfort things for yourself can be extremely beneficial.

If you tend to be more closed off and protective of how you feel or just don’t feel comfortable with sharing how you feel, journaling how you feel is a really good way to deal with stress and all other emotions. I personally don’t write down all my feelings, but I can see why this is helpful. It creates a safe space for you that you are in control of, it allows you to really reflect on your situation and you’ll most likely feel better after.

Stress can be a very harmful thing, especially if you don’t do anything about it. It is important to see what works best for you. Testing methods of dealing with your personal stress can be really beneficial. You might even discover new things about yourself.