As a new year unfolds, many start to get in the process of completing their New Year’s resolutions. According to Forbes, 48% of younger adults prioritized mental wellness this year as a part of their New Year’s Resolutions. This is a major step that the newer generations (ex. Gen Z), are taking to better themselves. Many teens face things such as academic pressure and social expectations, resulting in a decline to both personal happiness and academic decline. Things such as mental health days, self-care, positive mantras, and healthy coping mechanisms are one of the many things that are being done to improve mental wellness nowadays.
Mental wellness refers to the ability to manage stress, maintain healthy relationships, and feel emotionally stable in daily life. Although it is completely normal and inevitable that we will feel stress from time to time, building positive habits can help students feel more in control and resilient throughout the school year. In this article, I’ll be sharing 4-5 different things you can incorporate into your daily activities that can help reduce stress and increase happiness.
Prioritizing Sleep:
One of the most important (and often overlooked) things to improve your mental wellness and health overall is getting good sleep. On average, a teen should be getting anywhere between 8-10 hours of sleep each night. Oftentimes, this isn’t the case due to procrastination on homework, extracurriculars, pulling all-nighters to study for tests the next day, and scrolling on social media. Some of the poor effects of not getting enough sleep are being anxious, irritable, and having difficulty concentrating in class. By keeping up with a healthy sleeping schedule, you’ll be able to help manage your emotions and improve your focus, which can help decrease stress throughout the week.
Staying Physically Active:
Physical activity not only does wonders for your physical strength, but also for your mental wellbeing. When working out, the brain releases endorphins. These chemicals help reduce stress and anxiety, as well as release feelings of pleasure and joy. Whether you choose to try out a school sport, go for a light jog/quick run, do cardio, or even stretching (ex. yoga), regular movement helps you feel more balanced and calm. Incorporating some exercise in your routine is bound to improve your health and even any unregulated emotions, allowing you to release any tension or frustration in a healthy manner.
Talking About Feelings and Seeking Support:
Sometimes life gets to be too much, causing a large amount of stress and anxiety to accumulate. Having someone you can talk to, whether it’d be a family member, friend, neighbor, or teacher, can make dealing with these emotions and struggles a lot easier. Sharing areas of weakness like relationships, academics, or sports with someone you know and trust can help with lots of negative feelings such as isolation, doubt, and apathy. Oftentimes in cases where these feelings are extremely overwhelming, people find it beneficial to turn to a professional (such as a therapist) for guidance on how to deal and regulate these emotions. What a therapist (or other mental health professional) can do is help guide you in finding the root of the problem and discovering different coping strategies on how to deal with and prevent stress or any other negative feelings from emerging again.
Practicing Mindfulness/Stress-Management:
When life gets to be a lot, it’s important to have a healthy way of coping. Activities such as journaling, meditation, and deep breathing, are great ways to help manage stress. These methods allow you to take a step back, and take time to acknowledge the present and better understand your emotions. The whole point of practicing mindfulness is to focus on the present moment, allowing yourself to be grounded and not hyper fixated on whatever is causing you to worry or stress. Even if it’s only possible for you to spend a few minutes practicing mindfulness, you may still find improvements such as concentration and reduced anxiousness during stressful times.
Managing Screen Time:
Although a lot of us don’t want to admit it, we spend a huge amount of time on our phones. A study by BACA showed that teens spend roughly 6 hours a day using their phones! Although social media is a huge part of our day to day lives, such as scrolling through your for you page, liking and sending videos to your friends, and talking to your friends, that’s not to say it doesn’t come with its downsides. Lavish lifestyles, curated content, exposure to dangerous/harsh ideology, violence, and hate speech, are some of the few things that make social media so dangerous for us at this age. It’s with these things such jealousy, insecurity, isolation, increased stress, and low self esteem start to come about. By setting boundaries, such as a screen limit, with social media apps and taking breaks throughout the day and before bed is bound to increase productivity, sleep, and decrease all the stress and negativity filling your mind. You can even replace doomscrolling with going outside, exercising, trying something new, or fulfilling a hobby, things that don’t induce worry or that can put you in a negative headspace.
Conclusion:
Mental Wellness month serves a reminder to take care of your mental health. By building healthy habits, supporting one another, and encouraging open conversations, students can create a school environment where well-being is valued and supported.
Links:
Mental Health New Year’s Resolutions for Teens and Families
The science behind making and breaking New Year’s resolutions | KPBS Public Media
New Year’s Resolutions Statistics – Forbes Health
New Year’s resolutions shift back toward physical, mental health in 2026
