Let’s Talk About It: Coping with School Anxiety

We are back at it!  Back-to-school season!

For some students, this can be exciting and at the same time, terrifying. Figuring out how to balance both those emotions (and many others) can be difficult and create unwanted feelings that can grow over time.  There are new teachers to meet, new classmates to hang out with, and new routines to get used to. All of these things can lead to increased anxiety-leaving one feeling out of sorts and alone.

For parents and caregivers, it is important to know how to promote optimal mental health and recognize the signs that may indicate a need for additional mental health or substance use support. 

Let’s talk about back to school anxiety.

Anxiety disorders affect close to 32% of children ages 13-18 years old. We know that students who do poorly in school, miss out on social events with friends and family and engage in substance use are at a much higher risk of developing an anxiety disorder. Sadly-some students believe that using a mood-altering substance may help alleviate their anxiety, however, the opposite is true.  Substance use can actually worsen anxiety symptoms.  Knowing the symptoms and how to help is key to helping students learn how to navigate in a way that does not allow the anxiety to control them.  Anxiety is a normal emotion and something each of us has or will experience at some point in our life.  Anxiety is not dangerous and in most cases, passes fairly quickly by itself. It can become problematic when:

• one’s stress response gets confused
• one believes there is a danger or threat when there is not
• one fears the worst or believes the worst is inevitable

When our stress response is activated too much and one continues to perceive something as dangerous when it is not, the anxiety response will kick in more often-thus creating a recurring cycle which in turn keeps the anxiety at a much higher level than normal. 

Back-to-school anxiety is a very normal emotion and the beginning of the school year there can create many “what if” thoughts:

• what if I forget my lunch?
• what if I don’t have a place to sit on the bus? Or at lunch?
• what if I don’t know anyone in my class?

I am sure that each one of us can reflect back to our own anxiety during this time and could list MANY more “what if” thoughts of our own!

So-what can you do to support your student during the first few weeks of school?  First, be aware of the symptoms:

• avoidance of academic and peer activities
• frequent self-doubt and criticism
• late or incomplete assignments
• physical and verbal hyperactivity
• seeking constant reassurance from the teacher
• difficulty transitioning between school and home
• poor concentration

There are often physical symptoms as well:

• signs of panic
• stomachache
• nausea
• hyperventilating
• feeling faint

If you are a parent and/or caregiver of a student who experiences anxiety, know there is help out there! A great resource is Minnesota Association of Children’s Mental Health (MACMH).  Maybe send an email to your student’s teacher(s), sharing your willingness to partner together to help alleviate some of the school anxiety the student may be dealing with.  One great resource for understanding and managing anxiety can be found at ScreenAgers.  Additional info from MACMH can be found here as well.  

Mounds View schools have a number of resources available to help as well. Your student's dean is a great first step in finding support.  We also provide individual support through our school-based mental health professionals (please see your student’s dean for more information on how to get connected) as well as our own mental health/substance use student support staff (see below).

As always, our hope is that you have enough information at your fingertips to help your student and if given the opportunity, you can say, “Let’s Talk About It”!  The Student Support Team is always available if you have questions!

Colleen O’Neil, LADC
Mounds View Chemical Health Prevention Specialist
651-829-4708
colleen.o’neil@moundsviewschools.org

Julia Geigle, MSW, LICSW
Mounds View Mental Health Specialist
612-790-4928
julia.geigle@moundsviewschools.org

Chad Jayasekera, MA, LICSW
Mounds View Mental Health Specialist 
651-212-5291
chad.jayasekera@moundsviewschools.org