Help your teen balance school and mental well-being
Academic Pressure and Mental Health
We Accept Insurance
Many adolescents today relentlessly push themselves to get good grades. They’ve internalized society’s message that they must succeed academically to be worthy.
How does school affect mental health? According to the Washington Post, 75% of high school and 50% of middle school students self-describe as “often or always feeling stressed.” The long-term mental effects of academic stress can be devastating, causing chronic anxiety, depression, and several other mental health disorders.
The physical toll of unmanaged school pressure is equally destructive. The relentless push to achieve can make it challenging for teens to get a good night’s sleep, resulting in chronic fatigue and an inability to focus. According to a survey by the National Sleep Foundation, 87% of US high school students get far less sleep than the recommended nightly eight to ten hours. Physical health can also suffer because stress frequently manifests as headaches, stomach issues, and other physical ailments.
As a parent, you want your teen to do well in school. However, it’s unwise to sacrifice mental well-being to academic success. The solution is to balance mental health needs and the desire to do well in school.
What is academic stress?
Academic stress is often rooted in an overpowering need to succeed in school no matter the cost. At-risk students typically have a single-minded fixation on getting perfect grades, being the best in their class, and crushing all competition.
Several sources can contribute to a student’s development of such a fixation. While pressure often comes from parents and teachers, many students establish unrealistically high expectations for themselves. Fierce competition from classmates can further intensify the strain.
How to cope with school stress: Helping your teen
Time management
One of the best ways to reduce toxic stress is to schedule with mental health in mind. This means that instead of cramming schoolwork into every available moment, a student should strike a balance that sets time not only for study but also for rest and fun activities.
A schedule allows your teen to see their workload laid out in a manageable way. Encourage them to prioritize, focusing first on the most critical and time-sensitive tasks. This helps them stay on top of deadlines without the last-minute panic that invariably arises when they don’t manage their time well. Also important is formally scheduling social time and breaks because everyone needs time away from their academic workload.
Remind your teen, however, to be flexible with their schedule. After all, life is full of surprises, and sometimes we need to switch gears when things don’t go as planned.
The Pomodoro Technique
If your teen struggles to stay organized even with a schedule, the Pomodoro Technique might help. It splits study time into short intervals, helping them stay focused and making big tasks feel less overwhelming.
Here’s how it works: have your teen set a timer for 25 minutes and tell them to concentrate fully on a single task until the timer rings. Knowing that they need to focus for only 25 minutes at a time can significantly reduce academic anxiety.
Have your child turn off their phone, computer notifications, and social media apps during these study times. In this distraction-free zone, your teen can focus on their studies without interruption. When the timer goes off, they can take a five-minute break to recharge their psychological batteries.
After completing four 25-minute sessions, known as “pomodoros,” they can take a more extended break of 15–30 minutes. These breaks give their brain a chance to rest, helping them maintain a high level of productivity throughout their study session.
Environments conducive to study
Help your teen create a study space that’s free from distractions. Ensure it’s equipped with everything they need, such as a comfortable chair, a suitable desk, and proper lighting.
Remind your teen to keep this area organized and clutter free. Clutter can be incredibly distracting and make studying more stressful. A neat workspace helps clear the mind, making it easier to focus on the task at hand. This area should afford your child easy access to all needed study materials, such as textbooks, notebooks, and writing implements, so they don’t waste time looking for things.
Spaced repetition
Spaced repetition is a technique that will help your teen retain knowledge faster and more effectively than cramming during a single all-night study session. This method involves reviewing information over gradually increasing intervals. For example, they can go over a lesson today, revisit it a few days later, and then again a week after that.
This method helps ensure that knowledge is retained, making it much easier to recall when exam time rolls around. It also reduces the need for last-minute studying, which is not only stressful but ineffective.
Mental health tips for students
While self-care should be a regular part of everyone’s routine, it’s especially important for teens struggling with academic pressures.
Take care of the body
Taking care of physical needs promotes psychological health. Show your teen how amazing they can feel after fueling with nutritious foods. Meals that are chock full of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients help keep them radiantly healthy and provide the energy they need to stay focused during long school days.
Regular exercise is a fantastic stress reliever. However, it doesn’t have to be strenuous or time-consuming. Simple activities like a 20-minute walk five times a week can do the trick.
Make sure your teen understands the importance of getting enough rest. A good night’s sleep can improve concentration, memory, and overall mood. Encourage them to create a bedtime routine that helps them wind down, such as turning off devices an hour before bed and listening to calming music.
Engage in enjoyable activities
Because teens need time to unwind and enjoy life outside of academic responsibilities, encourage your child to engage in activities they enjoy. Whether spending time with friends, sitting by a picturesque lake, or watching a favorite program, these pursuits aren’t frivolous time wasters but ways to let off a little steam, minimizing the chances that your child will suffer from burnout.
Meditate
Meditation is a highly effective tool for managing stress. Encourage your teen to find a comfortable spot where they won’t be disturbed. Have them close their eyes, focus attention on their breath, and let their thoughts come and go like clouds passing through a limitless sky. Meditating for 20 minutes each day fosters a sense of inner peace, making it easier to tackle responsibilities with a calm and focused mind.
Do deep breathing exercises
Deep breathing slows the heart rate, relaxes the muscles, and quiets the mind. Teach your teen to take slow, deep breaths, inhaling through their nose and exhaling through their mouth. They can do this anytime they feel overwhelmed or anxious, whether in the middle of a study session or when taking a break.
Academic pressure and mental health: An alternative to in-person counseling
If your teen is finding school stress unmanageable and could use the guidance of a therapist, there’s an option you may not have considered: online counseling. This approach provides support without the need to travel to in-person sessions, making mental health care more accessible and less intimidating.
For some teens, crippling social anxiety makes sitting in crowded waiting rooms unbearable. Others feel ashamed due to the stigma attached to counseling. Youth who suffer an overpowering need to perform well academically may be especially hesitant to seek help due to fear of being judged negatively by friends or family. Transportation can also be a significant hurdle for teens needing therapy, as some families lack a reliable way to get them to appointments.
Online teen therapy solves these problems by bringing treatment to the doorsteps of struggling adolescents. It allows them to connect with a therapist from home (or anywhere else with an internet connection), making it easier to get help for issues like depression, anxiety, and eating disorders.
Final thoughts
One of the most significant challenges young people face today is balancing academic responsibilities with mental well-being. Tragically, some adolescents place a higher priority on good grades than mental wellness. These stressed students are on a collision course with burnout, a condition affecting far too many teens these days. By implementing the strategies shared in this article and seeking professional help as needed, however, you can prevent your child from suffering this fate.