As students ease back into the monotonous grind that is school, familiarities return. The friends you haven’t seen in months, the black Dell computers, the rough early waking up, and the ever-present anxiety. School can be stressful, it’s well known. But why? “For me I’d say genuinely making it through the school year and getting all my work done is the most stressful thing,” says Eli Kodner. Some teachers pile assignment after assignment onto students and don’t give them any time to work or even time to breathe, which I have experienced many times myself. They assign homework that interferes with students’ lives and sleep schedules. Students have jobs, sports, friends, and whole lives outside school that is interrupted by the devil that is homework.

But work alone is not the only anxious stressor. Parents often push their kids to be perfect, to turn in every single assignment. When I asked a student in my first period if he was already stressed in the beginning of the year, he quickly replied, “Yeah, my parents have been on my ass, they want me to get everything done.” The extra pressure from parents, alongside teachers, and the want for good grades can get to students. All this pressure builds up and explodes into a panic attack.

With school being a pressuring stressful bear trap, how do we prevent from getting trapped in it? We come to school every day and get through it. How do we do it? Everyone’s different and people respond in different methods. Deep breathing is recommended but doesn’t work for some. Here are some anxiety preventative methods that work for me:

Music. Everyone listens to music. In the hallways half the kids have a air pod or headphones in. It’s easy to get lost in the lyrics and the rhythm of a great song. When feeling stressful, anxious, or just not in a good mood, listening to calming or some of your favorite music can take your mind off schoolwork and the stress.

Another way to prevent stress is to get more sleep. Especially if you’re up all night getting last minute homework turned in at 11:58 when its due at 11:59. Take a nap or go to bed earlier. Just getting a good night’s sleep can make you feel so much better and improve your mood. But if none of these work for you, there’s a million other ways that can help you prevent the stress and anxiety of coming back to school.