April marks National Stress Awareness Month. Stress refers to how your brain and body respond to changes and challenges. Stress can affect your body, mind, thoughts, feelings and behavior. Stress that’s left unchecked can contribute to many health problems, such as high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity and diabetes.

You can monitor your stress by identifying the symptoms that come along with it. A few symptoms include difficulty sleeping or having nightmares, difficulty concentrating or making decisions, changes in appetite and the worsening of chronic and mental health conditions.

Ways that you can manage stress can include eating healthy, getting on a regular sleep schedule, learning how to say “no” so anything you aren’t comfortable with and connecting with others.

A few students were asked the same question. “What is something beneficial that you like to do when feeling stressed?” Their responses are as follows.

“I like to journal and write about the problems I am facing and try to find solutions to them,” said Savannah Caldwell (12).

“I like to sleep when I feel stressed,” said Caleb Payne (11).

“I like to give myself a self-care day,” said Ellie Brown (10).

“I enjoy going on walks and getting fresh air,” said Tallulah Midyett (9).

Stress is something that is extremely hard to control but doing any of the methods listed above could help you put yourself at ease. If you struggle with feeling stressed, try something that makes you happy or makes you feel at peace.