School, sadly, is starting again. Stress is unavoidable, but don’t make it even worse with things you can actually control. High school, especially, means unhealthy hours of sleeping, eating habits, and stress levels. As much as we complain and try to change this, it’s unavoidable. No matter how much schools “preach” to us to sleep for ten hours, it’s just not going to happen. Society puts a ton of pressure on us and then stabs us in the back with “advice and encouragement.”
You’re going to have uneven amounts of sleep. I promise. One day, you’ll have eight hours, and when you have a test, you’ll have five hours. Lacking sleep or having unbalanced hours leads to low energy and crazy hormones. These hormones will mess up your mood, make you think that you’re hungry, and cause anxiety. Now because of your unbalanced sleep habits, it’s even harder to sleep because you’re more stressed out, and will also make you bloated and gain weight. This cycle will repeat itself non-stop if you don’t do something about it.
Sleep is really important and it’s going to help you if you get enough of it. Studies show that people who sleep for six hours or less per night have the equivalent performance of a person who hasn’t slept for the entire night. It’s smart to set a bedtime for yourself and keep it no matter how much work you have. If this is impossible to do for you, it’s okay, because there are other ways you can help yourself.
Drinking water is crucial in your high school years because it detoxes the body and fills you up. When those hormones kick in, you aren’t actually hungry. Most of the time, it’s the body’s way of communicating that you’re thirsty. Make sure you’re taking time out of the day to drink as much water as you can. Water will help you from eating other sugary foods and carbs, so that you’ll be more energized. You don’t have to pay attention to your calorie intake because you’re just wasting your time. Just exercise and make sure that no more than 10% of your total calorie intake is from sugar. Sugar is in everything and there’s a crazy amount of it in what we eat daily. Just pay attention to the ingredients and you’ll feel much more energized and ready for school.
Stress is a huge issue in high school. Tests and such are unavoidable. But poor sleep habits and an unhealthy diet will make it worse. You have no reason to make your stress worse than it is! When you feel clean and healthy, you’ll become less stressed, and that will actually improve your performance in school.
Good luck in school and remember to stay emotionally and physically healthy!
