| Survival Guide for High School |
| For many, high school isn't the best time of their life. Many regard it as a pain. This may be partcially due to a common occurance in high school, disallusionment. It seems most people go through this in some way shape or form. For some this is a short spell, other it last for most of high school and into post-secondary life. One tip I would suggest is to attempt to find out what you personally are suffering from. What do you want changed? What are you upset with? Why are you disallusioned? These aren't easy answers. Causes of disallusionment: *hormones *confusing time for parents: tryign to let you be self while still holding on to you and guiding you in the right direction. (you may get mixed signals from them, but then again may you also send them too). *tired of school. After spending so much time in school, sometimes we get burnt out. We want a new experience. Sometimes the teachers really pile on the work, but that should be taken in stride. Perhaps you should back off of some of you harder courses if possible. *Personal expectations - you may want to do well in school and do well in other activities such as sports, etc. Doing both takes time and organization. Remember everyone is human. Most everyone can do just about anything they want, but sacrifices must be made. You may be able to have a great gpa, but your sports career may suffer. [note from Nick: From what I have seen and expierenced, it may be better to ere on the side of acedemia more so than sports, as grades will get you scholarships more often than will sports, though a good mix of the two will keep you well rounded]. * Parental expectations: Parent(s) often know what you can do. Many times when we get tired we forget to work as hard as we can or simply don't wish to persue certain venues. Many times parents see through this and try to push you to work harder. They usually always know what is best and have you interest in mind. Remember, they have done this before, though it may have been a while back; they do remember where they could have done better and will try to help you not make the same mistakes. *Other's expectations: Peers control a lot of the stressors in your life. High maintance friends are often more of a draw or henderance than a help. Remember you can help the world one person at a time, but try not to let other peoples problems keep you from sleeping (aka: either they keep you up, or you are constantly trying to solve their problems). Helping people is very good. Planning their life, puts your life on hold. *Sleep. Yep, this is one thing that is definintely needed. In my personal experience lack of sleep often hurt me more than I realized at the time. Lack of sleep will prevent you from thinking and operating at your peak performance. Lack of sleep will also make you more stressed and will hinder your ability to perform ordinary tasks effectively. *procrastination - yep, it shows up again. If you didn't adequately plan, sometimes things don't go you way. It happens. Most everyone (including myself) procrastinate and have done it for years, but planning and organization will often help this. Try to simplfy your life. *Diet and Exercise: DIET: If you tend to eat more than you should, watch portion size. Stop when you are satisfied, not stuffed. You would be surprised at how quickly you can see results and feel better when you watch this single thing. Eat enough meat and vegatables. This will maintain enough iron in your blood as well as other key vitamins. Eating non-processed foods will also help you to feel much better as fewer calories will give you the needed energy you need. Eating "junk food" is ok if kept within reason. Many of these tips will not only help you have a more enjoyable high school time, but also help with life in general (after high school). Disallusionment often associated with high school, is not solely there. I find many people have this happen after high school and even through life. One way to get out of this "rut" is to follow some of the tips from above and make sure to establish some time for yourself everyday. Take half of an hour to do something you enjoy, whether it is reading, sitting in a quiet room, or taking a walk outside... anything that has to do with you and gives you time to relax and think. Watching tv doesn't count... you can do that later in the day if you wish. I wish you the best of luck... and remember, have fun (but be responsible). |