Exam stress!

Teenagers all over the country are beginning to feel the pressure as the exam season rapidly approaches.

Is your teen struggling with a lack of motivation, disorganisation, is irritable and moody or is feeling anxious or apathetic? Students as teenagers are possibly already uncommunicative, but with the added stress of deadlines and revision, the young person may have great difficulty in expressing their concerns. 

This can be a challenging time for the whole family and knowing how best to support them can be difficult.

If the teenager is demonstrating anxiety and depression symptoms, with erratic emotions and they appear to be not coping so well or have significant changes in their eating and sleeping habits, or they are expressing feelings of low mood, particularly suicidal thoughts, then a GP consultation is advisable.

For many teenagers it can be much more subtle than this and who can improve the situation can be less obvious.

Schools and colleges are getting better at offering sessions on tips and strategies which enhance the students planning for revision, so they feel better prepared and more able to cope with the expectations. This is aimed at reducing students anxiety but with the multiple demand on teenagers, particularly social media, this preparation is getting harder to focus on.

The steady application relies on the teenager not being distracted by the persuasive pull of messages, apps and the internet. These interactions which give a dopamine 'hit' or the 'feel good factor' are difficult to manage, alongside their rapidly developing brains and peer pressure. Many of the past papers and study skills are accessed online, so it is increasingly difficult to avoid the pull of the internet.

Personal discipline is crucial, so addiction to using the mobile phone can interfere with consistent engagement with their study, as can fear of failure or a brewing performance anxiety. 

Accessing resources which improve the teenager's ability to remain calm, focused and able to commit to performing to the best of their ability would be hugely beneficial.

A session of hypnotherapy can help the student to explore these issues, set their intention and the steps necessary towards achieving this aim. This exploration engages the conscious mind, so during hypnotherapy, the unconscious mind can be influenced to be receptive to positive suggestions and find creative solutions. Steps can then be taken towards achieving the focus.