The end of the semester can mean different things for different people. For Student A it means that they can continue getting straight A’s and finishing the tests twenty minutes before anyone else. Unfortunately not all of us can be Student A; most of us are Student B. Student B is trying really hard but is lost and stressed out. It’s not a bad thing to be Student B … it’s just not where we want to be forever. At some point in our lives we will experience excruciating stress–it won’t help to complain, but it will help to know how to handle it.

Start off with giving yourself enough time to sleep and eat lots of healthy foods. Sophomore Katie Svehla says “eating healthy makes me more confident. I feel like I can handle anything that comes my way.” This helps to comprehend everything that is happening and prepare yourself to deal with all the work in a calm way.

When all the assignments, work and stress pile up, our minds immediately come up with ways for why it won’t work out. This can be very harmful to your work ethic. When negative thoughts form in your head, make sure to counter them with positive ideas. For example, instead of thinking “this is too hard,” try thinking “this will take some time and effort, but I will get it.”

Dividing up a project into smaller steps causes the work to seem more organized and less overwhelming. Take assignments one baby step at a time. “I like to take things one step at a time; it makes them seem more possible,” said senior Allie Arkel. Eventually you’ll take enough baby steps and finish the work!

Working continuously is harmful. It will tire you out completely, making it very difficult to complete your work. A healthy escape can include exercising, drawing, playing an instrument, singing, participating in a sport and much more! Sophomore Emma Jewell says, “I like to walk outside to clear my mind.”

As much as we hate to plan out our lives, it can be helpful in stressful situations. Creating a schedule for even a week can tremendously change your work habits. Distributing your time is an effective way to complete what needs to be done without wasting too much time on only one assignment.

The end of the semester can mean a lot of the things. For Student A it’s not a big deal, but Student B remembers the late night cramming, the last minute studying and the stress. We all have the ability to become the type of students who can conquer anything, including the stress that high school provides.

Learning to cope with the pressure is one of the biggest lessons we can learn from high school, and ultimately, it will help guide us into a successful future.