Stress?

LONELINESS AT SCHOOL

Earlier this year YoungMinds surveyed 2,000 young people in education aged 11 to 25 across the UK.

The results were distressing, with a third of pupils feeling that they had no-one to talk to at school during difficult times.

Loneliness emerged as the central problem confronted by these 15-17 year old school students – 35% of males surveyed said that they had no-one to talk to about their stress, and 31% of females.

The poll reveals that children and young people are growing up in a ‘toxic climate’. It found that:  

• Over half of children and young people believe they will be a failure if they don’t get good grades.
• Half of children and young people have been bullied.
• Four out of ten 11-14 year olds are skipping meals to stay thin.
• One-third of children and young people don’t know where to turn to get help when they feel depressed or anxious.

ABOUT SCHOOL WORK AND EXAM STRESS

There is a lot of pressure on children and young people to do their best and get good results, and the stresses and strains of school life can sometimes get on top of them, and they can find it hard to get on with their school work and homework.

There may be a number of reasons for this:

• Difficulties concentrating in class due to noisy or disruptive pupils
• Problems with friends or bullying
• Difficult relationships with teachers
• Pressure around course work hand-ins or exams
• Problems learning due to specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia 
• Problems paying attention due to developmental problems such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
• Problems at home getting in the way
• Feeling unsupported by parents or carers.

TIPS ON MANAGING EXAM STRESS FOR PARENTS

The following tips should help:

• Accept this is going to be a stressful time for the whole family – expect outbursts and try to remain calm
• Try and find out as early as possible what is expected of your child, when their exams will be and when coursework needs to be handed in
• Try and work with your child and support them rather than policing them
• Be clear that avoiding subjects they find difficult will not be helpful in the long run
• Encourage children to talk to you if they are really worried they haven’t done enough work. Reassure them that if they do not get their expected grades, there will be other opportunities ahead, and they should just do their best
• Find out what revision techniques are recommended by the school, and check out online revision sites
• If you have any concerns or questions, contact the school rather than relying on your child to do it – most teachers have email addresses which can be useful if they are hard to contact
• Encourage your child to have regular breaks, to do something they enjoy, even if it’s just half an hour off for their favourite soap
• Make sure they eat healthy snacks regularly, and drink enough so they don’t get dehydrated – you can always pop your head in to see how they are doing and bring them a drink
• Exercise is also a good way to relax, even just a walk round the block
• Children have different ways of revising – some may prefer to be alone, others work best surrounded by noise and family
• Respect their body clocks – many teenagers are more alert during the night and this may be the best time for them to revise even though it makes parents anxious!
• After an exam or hand-in, they might not want to talk about it immediately so let them decide
• Try and plan something nice for when it’s all over – reward them for trying their best, however they feel it went.