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According to the National Institutes of Health, nearly 1 in 3 of all adolescents, ages 13 to 18, will experience an anxiety disorder. This is an approximate 20% increase from 2007. Why are teens so stressed?

 

There are three major reasons for the increase in anxiety for teens according to the American Academy for Pediatrics:

 

  • High expectations/pressure to succeed-pressures to perform well on high-stakes testing
  • A scary/threatening world-war, school lock-down drills, pandemic
  • Social media-constantly being judged and judging themselves based on other’s social media posts

 

How do we help students with anxiety?

  • Be aware of the signs: changes in behavior, avoiding activities, dropping grades, trouble sleeping, risky behavior, chronic complaints of sickness.
  • Talk to students about stressors and help them to cope.
  • Set realistic expectations for students.
  • Encourage students to take breaks from social media.

 

Most importantly, encouraging students to make healthy choices and promoting a healthy lifestyle can be very helpful in decreasing a student’s anxieties.