Take a stand
A LETTER TO THE STUDENTS OF AIS FROM THE SCHOOL VICE PRESIDENT
SOMETHING THAT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO KNOW AS STUDENTS!!!
ABOUT STRESS AND SLEEP. HOW TO DEAL WITH IT PROPERLY.
TO FIND OUT MORE, CONTACT MIN-JUNG SUNG
216667@AIS.EDU.HK
CONTENTS OF THE LETTER
1
THE BENEFITS OF SLEEP AND HOW MUCH SHOULD A HS BE AIMING TO GET
2
THE PHYSIOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF STRESS
HOW CAN STRESS BE
3
POSITIVE/BENEFICIAL
WHAT ARE THE EFFECTS OF CHRONIC
4
STRESS ON THE BODY?
HOW CAN WE MANAGE SHORT-TERM
5
STRESS?/ STRESS MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES I RECOMMEND
1. THE BENEFITS OF SLEEP AND HOW MUCH SHOULD A HS BE AIMING TO GET
Dear students at AIS! Hello! I’m Min-Jung Sung! You might know me as a friend, as the school vice president, just a person you only recognize the face, or someone who always look so tired with a coffee every morning. Ok! You are right! I am a friend to some of you, the vice president of the student council, someone who looks tired with a can coffee. Today, I want to talk about the topic that all of you will be familiar with: STRESS! To help you know what this actually is and to help you cope with it! So every morning I drink a can of coffee. I buy it at the MTR station and because I am always tired from 3~4 hours of sleep, this is like my breakfast. All of you would understand why. School hw, test, assignment, AP, SAT, projects and so on… So, I want to ask you. How much sleep do you get? I hope it isn’t similar with me. Well, as a teenager you should get at least 8 hours to 10 hours of sleep. Sometimes you might think to be a perfect student, you shouldn’t sleep at all and study the whole night. The answer is no and let me tell you the benefits of sleep and how important it is.
THE BENEFITS OF SLEEP
1. It improves your memory. Sleep also plays a critical role in procedural memory – it improves your motor and visual learning, which you need when carrying out activities like playing the piano or roller-skating. 2. It sharpens attention levels/ better games. 3. Students who sleep more tend to have higher grades. 4. Sleeping reduces stress. 5. Sleeping can help you to make a healthy weight. 6. If you don't sleep, you can get all sorts of disorders: heart disease, heart attack, symptoms similar to ADHD and etc.
Now because we talked about sleep, I want to talk about stress which is related. How stressed are you? Well, I am very stressed easily with almost everything because of my meticulous personality. Just to see how stressed you are, I want you to answer the following questions. 1. I get seven to nine hours of sleep at least four nights a week. 2. I have a network of friends, family and acquaintances on whom I can rely. 3. I am able to speak openly about my feelings when angry, stressed or worried. 4. I do something for fun at least once a week. 5. I eat a well-balanced meal every day. 6. I have an income adequate to meet my basic expenses. 7. I recognize when I am not coping well under pressure and I know how to deal with it.
How was it?! Even if the answers are mostly no, don’t worry. What matters is how you really view and deal with stress. It is very important how you deal with stress since stress has both physiological and psychological effects.
LET ME GIVE YOU SOME EXAMPLES OF PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS: RAISED HEART RATE, INCREASED SWEATING, INCREASING MUSCLE TENSION, INCREASED ADRENALINE PRODUCTION AND SECRETION, HEADACHES/DIZZINESS.BLURRED VISION, ACHING NECK AND SHOULDERS, SKIN RASHES, LOWERED RESISTANCE TO INFECTION AND SO ON. SOME EXAMPLES OF PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS ARE THE FOLLOWING: ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, MOOD SWINGS, LOW SELF ESTEEM, LACK OF INTEREST IN ACTIVITIES, FEW FRIENDS, EFFECTS OF STRESS ON MEMORY AND MORE.
AFTER SAYING ALL OF THESE NEGATIVE EFFECTS, I WANT TO STRESS OUT AN IMPORTANT FACT THAT STRESS CAN ACTUALLY BE REALLY POSITIVE AND BENEFICIAL. BUT DO REMEMBER THAT STRESS IS AN INEVITABLE FACTOR IN LIFE, ESPECIALLY IF WE ARE STUDENTS. THE MORE YOU THINK STRESS IS BAD, THE MORE IT WILL BE BAD FOR YOU. IF YOU THINK THAT STRESS DOESN’T CAUSE HARM, IT WILL REALLY NOT BE THAT HARMFUL..
THIS CAN BE PROVEN FROM THE TED LECTURE IN 2013. A HEALTH PSYCHOLOGIST KELLY MCGONIGAL REVEALS A SIMILAR APPROACH TO STRESS. SHE SHARES A FASCINATING IDEA: THAT THE HARMFUL EFFECTS OF STRESS MAY BE A CONSEQUENCE OF OUR PERCEPTION THAT IT IS BAD FOR OUR HEALTH. THE STUDY: RESEARCHERS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON ASKED ALMOST 29,000 PEOPLE TO RATE THEIR LEVEL OF STRESS OVER THE PAST YEAR AS WELL AS HOW MUCH THEY BELIEVED THIS STRESS INFLUENCED THEIR HEALTH — A LITTLE, A MODERATE AMOUNT OR A LOT. OVER THE NEXT EIGHT YEARS, PUBLIC DEATH RECORDS WERE USED TO RECORD THE PASSING OF ANY SUBJECTS. THE FINDINGS: PEOPLE WHO REPORTED HAVING HIGH LEVELS OF STRESS AND WHO BELIEVED STRESS HAD A LARGE IMPACT ON THEIR HEALTH HAD A WHOPPING 43% INCREASED RISK OF DEATH. ON THE OTHER HAND, THOSE THAT EXPERIENCED A LOT OF STRESS BUT DID NOT PERCEIVE ITS EFFECTS AS NEGATIVE WERE AMONGST THE LEAST LIKELY TO DIE AS COMPARED TO ALL OTHER PARTICIPANTS IN THE STUDY. FOR INSTANCE, STRESS CAN HELP YOU MEET DAILY CHALLENGES AND MOTIVATES YOU TO REACH YOUR GOALS. IN FACT, STRESS CAN HELP YOU ACCOMPLISH TASKS MORE EFFICIENTLY. IT CAN EVEN BOOST MEMORY.
STRESS IS ALSO A VITAL WARNING SYSTEM, PRODUCING THE FIGHT-OR-FLIGHT RESPONSE. WHEN THE BRAIN PERCEIVES SOME KIND OF STRESS, IT STARTS FLOODING THE BODY WITH CHEMICALS LIKE EPINEPHRINE, NOREPINEPHRINE AND CORTISOL. THIS CREATES A VARIETY OF REACTIONS SUCH AS AN INCREASE IN BLOOD PRESSURE AND HEART RATE. PLUS, THE SENSES SUDDENLY HAVE A LASER-LIKE FOCUS SO YOU CAN AVOID PHYSICALLY STRESSFUL SITUATIONS — SUCH AS JUMPING AWAY FROM A MOVING CAR — AND BE SAFE. AND IF YOU ARE STRESSED FOR A LONG PERIOD OF TIME, WHICH IS ALSO KNOWN AS CHRONIC STRESS, IT BE VERY DANGEROUS DUE TO THE FOLLOWING SYMPTOMS: ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, SOCIAL ISOLATION, HEADACHE, ABDOMINAL PAIN OR LACK OF SLEEP TO BACK PAIN AND DIFFICULTY CONCENTRATING. OTHER SYMPTOMS INCLUDE PANIC ATTACKS OR A PANIC DISORDER. CHRONIC STRESS CAN INCREASE AN INDIVIDUAL'S RISK FOR PSYCHIATRIC DISORDERS AND SOME PHYSICAL DISORDERS, ESPECIALLY CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES.
HOW CAN WE MANAGE SHORT TERM STRESS?
Why don't you try the following? Meditate, exercise, smile and laugh, get social support, take a break from the stressor
SO NOW, I WILL TELL YOU SOME WAYS THAT YOU CAN COPE WITH STRESS. FOR ME, WHEN I AM STRESSED (SHORTTERM), I TRY TO TAKE A NAP, LISTEN TO POSITIVE AND ENERGETIC MUSIC, TALK ABOUT IT WITH PEOPLE AROUND ME. IF IT IS LONG-TERM STRESS, TRY SOMETHING YOU CAN DO REGULARLY SUCH AS HIKING TWICE A WEEK, DOING YOGA EVERY DAY AND ETC. ALSO TRY TO THINK ABOUT WHAT IT IS THAT IS STRESSING YOU EXACTLY. MAKE A PLAN AND FOLLOW IT. THAT IS HOW I DEAL WITH MOST OF MY STRESS FROM THE STUDIES.
"It's not stress that kills us, it is our reaction to it." HANS SEYLE