Fall is one of the busiest and most demanding times of the year for kids, parents, and families, which is why one teacher did something amazing to encourage his students.
This helpful list of "101 ways to copy with stress," is going viral after a California high-school psychology teacher, Brett Phillips, gave it to his students, according to Buzzfeed. Phillips has been distributing it to his classes for 10 years, but it recently gained popularity when student Alina Ramirez shared it on Twitter.
The list was intended to inspire Phillips' overwhelmed students, but now it's striking a chord with people of all ages and lifestyles. It's full of easy and practical ideas you can try during times when you're feeling stressed, as well as things you can do regularly to be proactive about your mental health.
Phillips compiled the ideas from textbooks and articles over the years. A few of the simplest tips include: writing down worries, saying "no" more often, and smiling. And at the end, there's a particularly uplifting message that reads: "BONUS: Relax, take each day at a time...you have the rest of your life to live."
Brett created this handout, which has been shared almost than 30,000 times, and planned the corresponding lesson plan at the beginning of the year so his students would get this list at a time when most seniors are stressed with college application and busy schedules. "I give students the list and then I have them pick five things that they need to start doing to lower their stress levels," he said.
"He knows how stressed we are with school, sports, work, and life in general, so he gave us the paper to help us, and just to have in case we are stressed," Alina said. "It has impacted a lot of people. Honestly his list has helped me a lot."
While we can easily imagine this worksheet being useful for high schoolers, we also know that these ideas could be remarkably beneficial for anyone dealing with stress. Phillips admitted that he uses the list as a reminder of things he should be doing. "I do a lot of the things on the list to enjoy life more myself," he said. "Life's short — too much stress will make it even shorter!"