Ms. Harrell is one of many counselors here at Santaluces that offer a range of support. One of the reasons she got started in the counseling field was because her sister struggled with mental health.

Her sister had met a counselor at her school that helped her through everything, and Ms. Harrell wanted to be that person for someone out there.

Many students aren’t always aware that they have anxiety, or they try to ignore it. That little voice in your head could be the start to it.

Anxiety is one of the numbers of mental health problems here at Santaluces. Anxiety levels were extremely high after online learning because students weren’t used to being out of the comfort of their homes. Ms. Harrell confirms that the anxiety levels were lower before quarantine and distance learning.

Now you may ask, what’s the biggest cause of anxiety?

There’s a long list of causes, but some could be family issues, problems with friends, or not understanding what’s going on. What I mean by “not understanding what’s going on” is that you’re lost or don’t understand what’s happening, which causes anxiety because you’re overthinking and worrying.

Some of the biggest signs of anxiety are constant worry, losing interest in your normal hobbies, stop hanging out with friends, and changes in your eating and sleeping habits.

Students’ first step to getting help for their anxiety would be to tell a trusted adult; that could be a teacher, a coach, a principal, or even a friend.

They should inform you that you need to speak to your guidance counselor so they can refer you to someone that can help. If you’re not comfortable with speaking to somebody about your anxiety, then try to do other things to help and soothe it.

Activities such as drawing, writing, and listening to music can help.

Finding your trigger is one of the biggest things that will help you lower your anxiety. Knowing where your anxiety comes from will help you target the problem and hopefully help you find a way to cope with it.

Ms. Harrell says that she thinks that in the past 2 years, Santaluces has gotten a number of resources for students to use.