Good Ways to Manage Anxiety

Written By Colēgia

One of the harder things to handle during school is anxiety. There can be many factors that contribute to this such as increasingly difficult assignments, social pressure, and self-imposed expectations. Today we want to cover some good ways to help manage anxiety.

Performance Anxiety

Performance anxiety is one of the more common areas within the educational sphere that we may experience. Given that a good amount of our academic success is correlated to our grades it can contribute to this mindset. One thing to bear in mind is that your grades do not define your self-worth as an individual. They are a byproduct of your own internal mental state along with other habits and tendencies. It is also normal that we aren't perfect in every subject. Some people thrive in creative environments while others have more of an affinity toward logic and reasoning. Taking time to understand what subjects we prefer can give us insight as to our performance. A helpful way to manage this is to take a step back and examine any areas that might be giving us trouble. If so, we can take steps to study more thoroughly along with reminding ourselves that we can still do well without needing to be perfect.

“One thing to bear in mind is that your grades do not define your self-worth as an individual.”

Social Anxiety

Socializing is a common and needed skill regardless of age and anxiety can often emerge from some social situations. Being mindful that some people prefer larger social gatherings while others do not is good to recognize. There are instances where even with being out of the comfort zone where people still prefer smaller groups and that is perfectly fine. There are ways to help overcome this. For example, if we have anxiety with public speaking, having notes or a flashcard near us to help us get back on track can work wonders for our anxiety. Little things such as taking an extra moment to think before we say something can help us breathe and stay in the moment. Getting out of our comfort zone in a constructive manner is essential for social anxiety. A good support group can help ease us out of this and instill confidence in other areas.

“Getting out of our comfort zone in a constructive manner is essential for social anxiety.”

Expectations And How to Address Them

Expectations are one of, if not the largest contributors to our anxiety. One thing to think about is what specific person is setting the expectations? Are they generalized and what we feel the world expects from us? Are they self-imposed expectations? Are they being put upon us by our friends and family? All of these are relevant to ask as each of them can affect us in different ways. While it is good to want the best for yourself, it can also cause unneeded stress. Instead of seeking to live up to a standard set by someone else, a healthier approach is to take into account your current skillset and work from there. You don't need to be the best at something but there is a level of competence that you can work toward that will make you happy. Maybe this means going for a 90% on a test instead of 100% or saving 10 seconds on a run instead of a minute. However you choose to do so, make sure to prioritize your happiness.

Colēgia

Colēgia

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