Stress has always been a part of people’s lives and it will continue to be there until death do us part. Our bodies stretch to reach an equilibrium, but stress disrupts that. People have their own ways of coping with it. Some are healthy and some are not, but that typically does not stop people from doing those things.

Stress is anything that poses a threat to one’s well being. There are also different types of stressors some good and some bad. Stressors are how people respond to in the environment such as, people, noises and dates.

When someone becomes stressed there are quite a few symptoms. blood pressure tends to rise, insomnia can occur, but worst of all, become more susceptible to diseases.

Junior Tori Kelm said, “Occasionally I will have breakdowns where I don’t want to do anything and I want to drop out of everything but I know that it gets better.”

Stress happens when we are under a lot of pressure. Everyone responds and deals with stressors differently. Many people turn to exercise, manage time wisely, eating healthy and being positive. junior Dylan Tischer  said, “Exercise is a very common thing that I see students use to reduce stress.”

Stress does not only effect the mind, it affects thoughts and feelings along with behavior. It can effect thoughts by creating anxiety, irritability and sadness. Behavior is also effected it can cause overeating, conflicts in relationships and crying outbreaks.

Tischer said, “A few signs of stress that I tend to have is to tense up and act salty.”

Fight or flight responses are one way that your body naturally deals with stress. The sympathetic nervous system deals with this response. It occurs when a threat or something harmful becomes a threat to the body then the brain processes what is happening and either decides to fight back or flee the scene. People can either decide to study for a test or ignore it until the day of.

Another way that the body naturally responds to stress is the General Adaptation Syndrome. In this profile the alarm or harmful event is the first thing to happen. It is then followed by a resistance stage where people either try to isolate themselves, deny the problem, calm themselves down or shut down emotionally. The final stage is exhaustion where the body needs time to recover. This is why students are so tired after finals week.

Many students feel stuck because it is a continuous cycle of stressors, and this will most likely never change.

Kelm said, “I feel like the institution of school could definitely be changed to alleviate the stress that kids have today because I feel that the whole reason we get stressed out is because we are working towards going to college and getting a better job but as of right now you can’t really change the way that it’s working.”

Homework can create a lot of stress for many students. Some teachers assign way too much and others do not believe in it. Most students have at least two to three hours every night which can be a lot.

Tischer said, “A lot of times when we get homework it is very unnecessary and a lot of busy work and it stresses kids out and distracts them from doing other activities.”

Some people just do not know how to deal with their stressors and this is when depression can happen. Not handling stressors correctly or being chronically stressed from life situations can increase the changes of becoming depressed. This is one of the reasons why finding a healthy way to deal with stress is important.

Kelm said, “I get my work done and I never stop until I finish it.”

Mental health plays a big part in stress. In high school almost everyone is extremely stressed and it is paramount to find a healthy way to deal with it.

Kelm said, “I see many students doing drugs, working out and also some people alleviate stress by not doing any of their work and sleeping.”