Stress by Julia Dykstra

"Something Important to You" was this month's blog post topic. I spent longer than I'd like to admit thinking about something that's important to me that would be suitable to write about. There were many things I considered writing about like my grades, sports, going to a good college, and so many more. But when it came down to it, everything that was important to me all resulted in the same thing: stress. So rather than writing about all the little things that are important to me, I want to write about the totality of all of them and the pressure that is put on teenagers to be perfect.

Even though I'm only a sophomore, going to college has been on my mind since elementary school. Obviously, I've had to lower my standards a little bit, since I thought I would go to Princeton in fifth grade, but I still think about it most days. Some days it feels like every decision I make directly connects to whether or not it will help me get me to the schools I want to go to.

https://www.miamiherald.com/living/article1961770.html

Grades and sports directly connect back to college. I get one bad grade and I think my chances of going to a school are ruined. And even though I love sports, sometimes it becomes a lot to not be getting home until 10 o'clock on game days and still having to do hours of homework can get to be a lot. 

The combination of all these things that I consider important to me all results in extreme stress. It is so ridiculous that teenagers have so much on their plate on a daily basis. Obviously, stress can have terrible effects on the body and brain. There have been several cases of people in their early twenties dying of stress-induced heart problems because of school and the extreme pressure it puts on people. If you don't believe me, look at it for yourself here: https://www.miamiherald.com/living/article1961770.html

 For another example, this is a healthy brain versus a brain with chronic stress. 

High school isn't the hardest or most stressful thing in the world, but it can definitely put a lot of pressure on developing minds to succeed. In addition, so many things are constantly changing when you are in highschool. It can be hard to keep up with it all, and it's hard to be constantly reajusting to your surrounding. I know that this is something that many people struggle with as high schoolers. The pressure put on by having high standards, either put on by yourself or by society, can be very difficult to deal with. I know this was somewhat rambely and all over the place, but it just seems crazy to me that everything important to me or that means a lot to me results in me simply worrying about it. In today's society, it can seem as though the future is rapidly approaching, and if you do not prepare for it quickly, you won't be successful. Average doesn't cut it for so many people, so everything becomes a compition, with not only others, but yourself. All of this causes immense amounts of stress and pressure, that, if continues and becomes chronic, could potentially end your life.