Many of us today are overwhelmed, and young people are no exception. Even in normal times, the pressures of school, exams, and a full schedule can cause a student to feel anxious and overwhelmed. The unprecedented pressures and changeabilities of the past two years has only increased these feelings. Feeling overwhelmed often manifests as increased stress and forgetfulness. Even basic ideas or concepts can be forgotten when our minds are preoccupied with information, worry or expectations.
Better managing stress and feelings of overwhelm can help students become more focussed, productive and at ease. Supporting our children and strengthening their resiliency is our goal.
Effective Strategies to Address Overwhelm:
Reassure
Students may feel that it is impossible to meet all the expectations their parents and teachers have of them. Often the harshest critic is our own internal taskmaster. The majority of students benefit tremendously from a mentor to build their self-confidence and explore assumptions of what they can achieve.
Prioritize
A simple to-do list can greatly reduce stress. Help your child catalog all the actions they must perform, then arrange into the order of importance. Spend time discussing what their focus is, and show them how each task relates to meeting their goals. Ask questions to enable them to recognize what’s really important. We often tell students: you can do anything but you can’t do everything. Help them prioritize.
Focus
The next step is to focus our student’s efforts by separating the list into must do and want to do . It is very common for overwhelmed students to confuse the two. Next, help them to simplify their complex agenda into an actionable plan, determining a timeline and workable schedule.
Academic Coaching & Mentorship
Our skilled academic coaches and mentors tackle overwhelm by utilizing the above steps, and much more. Our high school and post-secondary coaches have extensive experience supporting various aspects of executive functioning from organization, study skills, time management, and more effective note-taking, to the post-secondary admissions process and providing guidance in navigating academic choices. The vital development of writer’s craft, research, essay and academic writing, is prioritized. Our academic coaches and mentors are empathetic, experienced individuals. Well-equipped to understand and support each student’s particular challenges and strengths, assisting them in building self-confidence and finding their own unique path.
We welcome the opportunity to discuss how our services would benefit your family.
