(We are not mental health professionals)

For those afflicted with silent illnesses, hearing about the new attendance policy was scary. All of a sudden, it felt that the power to voice a temporary inability to attend school–due to depressive episodes, panic attacks, and more–was suddenly ripped from their hands.

In a school with 1,200 students, statistically speaking, there are 300 students with anxiety, yet, on a day-to-day basis, there is little to no in-school, dedicated support for these students. Those who speak up about it, too, with the wrong teacher are “fragile”; if the student doesn’t say anything, but is paralyzed from doing work or something of the like, they’re “lazy.” While asking for a dedicated staff or opportunities for “504 plans” for anxiety and depression may be unreasonable today (when the budget is already set), in the long run, students suffering from acute anxiety and depression need help from teachers and counselors in coming to school and participating in class regularly.

In the meantime, here are our tips. You can absolutely do this. And if you can’t, reach out to us.

Resting and Building Resilience After School

1. Take care of yourself. It’s okay to take a mental health day every now and then, as long as it’s not every day.
2. Drink lots of water. It really does make a big difference. Incorporate this into your daily routine. Set goals, or download an app that does so for you!
3. Don’t procrastinate. While it may be tempting, it’ll just make you feel ten times worse in the long run.
   1. In order to work on your procrastination, try making a “Pomodoro” list. Separate your free time into 25-minute chunks with 5-minute breaks in between. After four Pomodoros, take a minute break. This way, you’ll see how much you can reasonably get done, nor will you get overwhelmed with a fear of too much work and too little time.
4. Stay away from sugar, and try to eat well in general. Physical health can have a huge impact on mental health, and sugar can definitely make anxiety and depression worse.
5. If you happen to binge or eat some junk food–forgive yourself! Tomorrow will be better.
6. Reward yourself. Tell yourself that, once you complete a certain amount of work, you’ll spend five minutes reading a good book or watching a funny video.
7. Take time to relax. Run yourself a hot bath, put on calming music, and bring a good book to relieve stress.
8. Find a hobby that helps with stress. Baking and drawing are good examples.
9. Take a break from the news. Humans weren’t necessarily equipped with the ability to process the amount of trauma that international news covers daily.
10. Cuddle with your friends! Cuddling can release oxytocin, which can definitely make you feel better.
11. Let yourself cry if you feel like you need to do so. Crying definitely helps with stress, and it’s good for your skin. However, make sure to continue to drink water, since crying will dehydrate you.
12. Exercise. Once you get into the habit of doing so, you’ll start to feel really good, and your overall health will improve, which will make you feel so much better.
13. Change your bedsheets regularly, and keep your room clean in general. A clean environment can definitely increase productivity and decrease anxiety, whereas a dirty environment just puts you in a depressing environment, which makes it harder to pull yourself out of depressive episodes.
14. Wait until nobody else is home and scream at the top of your lungs. It’ll make you feel better, trust me.
15. Follow a bunch of dog accounts on Instagram and go through all the pictures. Better yet, go downtown and pet some dogs. Dogs make everything better.
16. Write down exactly how you’re feeling. It’ll help get it out of your system. Even better, once you’re done writing, send it to a close friend. They may be able to help, or they can just be there for you and understand how you’re feeling.
17. Self-harm is not a good option. It may help you feel slightly better in the moment, but it’s addictive, and it’ll make things much worse in the long run.
18. The same applies to non-doctor-prescribed drugs. Overall, they’ll end up making depression and anxiety much worse.

Making It Through The School Day With Anxiety And Depression

1. “Swallow your pride” and reach out to teachers. This is not a weak move: you must ally yourself with people who have the power to make school a better experience for yourself. Your teachers will understand, and, more than likely, can help you.
2. Make yourself a lively playlist. Not necessarily happy, just lively. (Maybe put two earbuds in!) Focus on keeping yourself in the moment and feeling something, even if this is anger or angst. Don’t let yourself slip into indifference.
3. Play a computer game that keeps your mind active: Sudoku, Set, KenKen, or even Sporcle quizzes that force you to remember the capitals of all of our states, or the capitals of South American countries, if you’re feeling particularly gutsy. Here’s a freebie for you: the capital of Suriname is Paramaribo.
4. Reach out to friends. You’re not bothering them, I promise. You’ll feel so much better once you talk to someone about your problems.
5. Do a regular scan of your mental health, maybe during class transition time. Ask yourself: what am I anxious about? What can I do to isolate this anxiety? If I knew someone who would do anything for me right now, what would I ask them to do to help me? Is this an anxiety that can be postponed?
   1. If there is something that someone else can do for you, especially a teacher, ask them.
   2. If the anxiety can be postponed, write it down. You’ll come back to it once the day is over.
6. Some classic escapism: ask a parent for a photo of your dog or other pet. Better yet, a video! Remind yourself that there is good in the world.
7. If you’re having an anxiety attack or a panic attack in class, tell a teacher. They might let you sit out for a few minutes.