Big hat dude: Sophomore Cody Otey salutes the camera during Basketball Senior Night on 02-05-10.

Juniors Joe Harrison, Josh Collins and Trey Anderson visit with Joe's cousin, Cassidy Howerton of AmPo, during at the Alex-Minco basketball game on 02-05-10.

Freshman Jordan Johnson and 8th grader Jackson Mainka perfect their nacho-making skills in the Alex concession stand during Basketball Senior Nite on 02-05-10.

8th graders Ashley Williams and Kambrie Patton take a seat in the student section to cheer on the Alex boys basketball team as they pulled off a last minute win against Minco on 02-05-10.

Waiting with the roses: Mrs. Thurston prepares to distribute roses to the Seniors on Basketball Senior Night 2010 while Michael Mainka (dad of Alex students Zach and Zoey Mainka) and Coach Yeiser look on.

livin' AND learnin'
Posts by Mrs. Taylor, Alex Counselor

What kids say about stress...
From KidsHealth.org

Compared with what adults face, it might seem like kids don't have that much to stress about. But kids have their own concerns — and sometimes feel stress, just as adults do. And kids' stresses can be just as overwhelming, particularly if they don't have effective coping strategies.

A KidsHealth® KidsPoll explored what kids stress about the most, how they cope with these feelings, and what they want their parents to do about it.

The poll showed that kids are dealing with their stresses in both healthy and unhealthy ways, and while they may not say so, they do want their parents to reach out and help them cope with their feelings.

The poll underscored how important it is for parents to teach kids to recognize and express their emotions, and to use healthy ways to cope with the stress they experience. By guiding them to healthy coping skills, parents can help prepare kids to tackle whatever stresses they meet throughout their lives.

Results of the Poll

We asked kids to tell us what things cause them the most stress. Kids said that they were stressed out the most by: grades, school, and homework (36%); family (32%); and friends, peers, gossip, and teasing (21%).

These are the coping strategies kids said they use the most (they could give more than one response):

• 52% play or do something active
• 44% listen to music
• 42% watch TV or play a video game
• 30% talk to a friend
• 29% try not to think about it
• 28% try to work things out
• 26% eat something
• 23% lose their temper
• 22% talk to a parent
• 11% cry

About 25% of the kids we surveyed said that when they are upset, they take it out on themselves, either by banging their heads against something, hitting or biting themselves, or doing something else to hurt themselves. These kids also were more likely to have other unhealthy coping strategies, such as eating, losing their tempers, and keeping problems to themselves.

The idea that kids would do things to try to harm themselves may be shocking to parents. But for some kids, feelings of stress, frustration, helplessness, hurt, or anger can be overwhelming. And without a way to express or release the feelings, a kid may feel like a volcano ready to erupt — or at least let off steam.

Sometimes, kids blame themselves when things go wrong. They might feel ashamed, embarrassed, or angry at themselves for the role they played in the situation. Hurting themselves may be a way to express the stress and blame themselves at the same time.

The poll also revealed important news for parents. Though talking to parents ranked eighth on the list of most popular coping methods, 75% of the kids surveyed said they want and need their parents' help in times of trouble. When they're stressed, they'd like their parents to talk with them, help them solve the problem, try to cheer them up, or just spend time together.