Year 13s Venus (Diversity and Inclusion Rep) and Isie (Charity Rep) with Year 9 Wellbeing Lead Hattie and Miss Munro gave a fantastic assembly earlier this week as part of Mental Health Awareness Week, sharing great tips to help us feel better if we are feeling overwhelmed.

They spoke about what anxiety is, what we might be feeling and how it can affect us then gave some great tips for talking to someone experiencing anxiety, including what to say and what not to say:

❌ What do you have to be anxious about?
✅ How can I help you to feel less anxious?

❌Just calm down!
✅ I can see you’re anxious. What can I do to help?

❌Worrying won’t solve anything.
✅Let’s focus on what you can control.

Our Sixth Formers talked about celebrities from Selena Gomez to Ryan Reynolds who have been experiencing anxiety & how they are overcoming their own mental health issues.

The assembly also touched on the significant impact of ‘News Anxiety’ which can make us feel an array of emotions, including happy, angry, sad, curious and upset. The four students also presented some great advice on how to reset your relationship with the news, by focusing on what you can control.

Our Top Tips:

Only check your phone at certain times of the day. E.g Screen time apps like SmartCookie – if you complete an educational module on the app, it grants you more screen time for that week.

Reconfigure your tech settings e.g turn off your pop up notifications.

Choose how you respond to distressing news e.g get involved with a community activity to support something you care deeply about – this could even be related to news that has affected you. eg. charity fundraising to support war refugees or just simply put your phone down and take a break.

Spend time with people you care about.

Interrogate your thoughts e.g Challenge unhelpful thinking and put your thoughts on trial. You could ask yourself: Why do I feel this way? Is this something I can control? If not, what can I do to help myself?

Channel your anxiety by accepting responsibility for your actions e.g Climate change. Rising costs of living. You cannot assume responsibility for all of these. They are out of your control.  However, there may be smaller actions you can take and be responsible for including: Writing to your MP and participating in local and general elections.

If something doesn’t work, try something else.

Ask for professional help when you need it.

There were also 5 and 10-minute techniques recommended if you’re feeling anxious, which you can do anytime or anyplace, including distraction techniques, adrenaline burn-off and ‘box breathing.’

The three students and Miss Munro then shared their own tips to feel less anxious, from drawing, going for a walk, meditation, laughing at funny dog videos on YouTube and giving to others, which can all help our mental health.

Heading into exams week, their final piece of advice was to help and support each other. Be positive and try to understand everyone will deal with the week differently. If you prepare and try hard, then that’s all you can do.