I, have noticed a huge change in my mental health before the pandemic and now. Before the pandemic, while walking around the school I would have a lot of anxiety attacks. Those anxiety attacks would cause me to feel overwhelmed most of the time. The anxiety attacks are scary. My heart starts beating very fast, and I start to hyperventilate. Overall, it’s not a pleasant feeling. 

Also, I would have a hard time speaking in some settings, like around the teacher. Or, I would worry about a wide variety of everyday things. Now since the pandemic, I’ve started to learn how to manage my anxiety and it’s not so bad anymore.

Techniques I use to manage anxiety are (1) deep breathing, (2) recognizing a panic attack, (3) practicing mindfulness or, (4) finding a focus object. Those techniques help me calm down and feel way better most of the time. 

Before the pandemic I was stressed by school pressure. Why? Because of academic and social competition, personal pressure to do well, social anxieties, and heavy workloads. My school situation would sometimes be even worse when I got too little sleep, or wasn’t eating much. After the pandemic, I’m not as overwhelmed by school. I’m a lot calmer because for online school I don’t have to worry about the social anxieties as much, and I can focus on my classes more easily. 

Before the pandemic, during the school day, I would easily become irritable or angry most of the  time. I would lashing out and become frustrated over everyday occurrences that usually do not warrant an emotional reaction. Giving in to my anger ruined my relationships and had many effects on every aspect of my life. It led to lashing out, making rash decisions, and engaging in risky behaviors. Now, I’ve learned to manage these behaviors, but I’m nervous to see if my progress will continue to work when we return to school.