Ask for help | Some stress can be positive, but ‘ugly’ stress can lead to anxiety and depression
MISSISSAUGA, Ont. — Taking care of mental health is just as important as monitoring physical health, young people were told during the recent National 4-H Members Forum.
Simon Greenbush of the Rawdon 2-Way 4-H Club in Newport, N.S., said skiing is his stress relief.
“There’s lots of different ways to be active to help you cope when things get to be too much,” said the second year university student.
“It’s most important that you do something that makes you happy, something you like to do.”
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Greenough said it’s important to watch for signs of depression in others.
“If you can tell when something is different about them, something wrong, talk to them about it,” he said.
4-Hers learned about ways to curb stress in sessions focused on fitness, art and mental health.
Nancy Hood, youth engagement co-ordinator with Peel Children’s Centre-Nexus Youth Services, said it’s important for young people to explore the options that are available to them in advance of stressful situations.
“So they can tap into resources that make them feel good,” she said, citing examples such as exercise, time with family and friends and talking with someone.
“We want them to identify for themselves self-care strategies they would use,” she said.
Hood said to avoid “ugly” stress such as feeling slighted by not being invited to a party.
Instead, consider that it might be because they did not see the invitation on Facebook.
She called exams and graduation examples of positive stress because young people are working toward specific goals.
“Be mindful of the stress going on and have coping strategies.”
Watch for worrisome symptoms such as anxiety, weight loss, irritability, excessive sleeping and the inability to control emotions. Encourage those in trouble to seek help.
“It’s OK to ask for help and im-portant to ask for help,” she said.
“Try not to hold it inside. Find someone to talk to.”
Hood said it is especially important for young people in rural areas, where access to resources is more limited than in the cities.
She called stress the body’s natural response to intense situations, but said it’s how people handle and perceive it that make it better or worse.
“Our thoughts affect feelings that affect behaviour,” she said.
