By: Christopher Burt

Stepping into a new school can be a terrifying and stressful experience, particularly in high school. Growing up, my dad worked construction, so every few years we would move to another new state. I went to a handful of different elementary schools, and I had the great misfortune of experiencing a new high school twice, because once just wasn’t miserable enough. I originally attended high school in South Carolina. From there, my family and I moved to Denton, Texas. I attended Guyer High School, and I’m guessing there was about three thousand kids that attended that school. This made it easy for me to stay camouflaged and quiet the majority of the time I was there.

The story can’t just end there, though, because as soon as I got comfortable there, Frazee Minnesota was the next stop (because the only logical option is to move from the pleasant climate of Texas to the arctic tundra of Minnesota). For some reason, I always thought that the closed-minded, confederate flag waving people only lived in the South; this wasn’t the case. I was intrigued to see that Midwestern Minnesota was full of dip-spitting, loud truck driving “rednecks” just like the towns I’ve lived in down south, except there’s never any sun, so their necks are pasty white.

All jokes aside, stepping into a new high school is a great way to ramp up your anxiety levels. I have always been a person who could be considered on edge. Novel situations, for as long as I can remember, have always made me very anxious. When entering a new school, this anxiety was increased. Multiple thoughts raced in my head. From, “Wow, those guys seem pretty cool, hopefully I can get to know them” to “Why did I wear this stupid polo, everyone here is wearing plaid button-ups.” Every time I stepped into a new high school, the same thoughts raced through my head and the stress built back up. High school is already an unfortunate time for the students, mostly because of the legendary “hormones”. Take a student, make his hormones go haywire, then add a new school, and what you are left with is a cocktail for stress.

There is some science behind being a new student in a new school. It mostly shows that it increases stress levels, which has negative effects for the student. Tiffany Field, at the University of Miami Medical School (Study Here) observed preschool children and found that those who transferred schools had increases in negative affect, fussiness, illness, along with a few other maladies. Although this study only looked at preschool children, I think it seems logical that it translates across adolescence. To help manage my stress when I changed schools, I tried many different strategies. What I found were five ways that helped ease my stress and assimilate into a new school:

When I moved to Minnesota from Texas, the transition was particularly tough. The culture shock and the close-knit community I moved to made me feel like an outsider. This did not get much better until I got involved in extra-curricular activities, like football and basketball. I think this is the biggest way for someone at a new school to make the transition easier. Not only did this open new opportunities to meet fellow students, it also helped me stay busy, which helped with the homesickness of being in a new place. Sports, in particular, can bring a great amount of camaraderie among students, which helps especially when a student is new. Those long bus rides to different schools are some of my favorite memories in high school. It is also well known that exercise enhances mood, and playing sports is a great way to do that, while also making friends. According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, physical exercise has the ability to reduce levels of tension, elevate mood, and even improve sleep. Not only was I building friendships in sports, I was also bettering my mental health. Another way I helped manage the stress of switching to a new school was finding a job. Part of this was motivation from myself, but I would be lying if I did not say that the majority of the reason I got a job was because of my parents. When I moved here from Texas, I was fifteen years old. Although that isn’t old enough to work in Texas, it is in Minnesota. So I got a job at a restaurant, which helped me stay busy and meet more of my peers. Because of this job, I became a more talkative and friendly individual, which led me to meeting one of my best friends there. Working in a restaurant is great, too, because you are forced to communicate with people you don’t know, which is good practice for going outside of one’s comfort zone. The Youth Development Study conducted by Jeylan Mortimer found that working can enhance healthy mental development in teenagers. Not only that, but working in a restaurant also pays great. I was able to afford to go to the movies and sports camps, among other things, which helped me build more friendships. This all tied into lowering my stress levels, because I stayed busy and got to know my fellow peers outside of the school environment. Plus, what high school student doesn’t love extra cash? Although this may seem obvious, getting enough sleep is crucial to overall stress reduction, especially in high school students. I am still bad at this. Though I get enough sleep, I never get to bed at an early enough time to give me ample opportunity in the morning to get ready. As a student in high school, I was faced with the same problem. Teenagers live very busy lives (work, homework, and after school activities), sleeping seems to be on the back of their priorities. According to the National Sleep Foundation, lack of sleep can limit ability to learn, concentrate and listen. Not getting enough sleep also contributes to being more prone to illness. A student trying to get used to a new school will only cause themselves more stress if they are out of school sick. Also, going to bed at a decent time is important. Going to bed at 1 AM doesn’t give a student much time to sleep when the school bell rings at 8:15 in the morning. Instead, having a set bedtime that allows for enough sleep and adequate time to get ready in the morning is vital to maintaining good sleep hygiene (and body hygiene, too). Attending class is vital when being new at school. Different schools have different curriculum, so transferring can be difficult because of where the classes are in terms of learning. Every time I transferred to a new school, I fell far behind with my grades because I hated going to school and getting there on time. I was probably avoidant of the situation, since the whole concept of being new stressed me out, but being absent only made my stress worse. Because of this, attending every class and being on time will help a new student become acclimated to the new academic guidelines. A study hosted by Attendance Works found that missing three or more days a month leads to lower test scores. This was probably my biggest mistake when I transferred high schools; I never wanted to go to class and often skipped. This caused me to fall greatly behind in class, always playing catch up on missed assignments and tests and it exacerbated my mental stress. If I could redo the whole process of transitioning into a new school, I would have been on time to every class and paid more attention. The last way I was able to get used a new school and manage the stress of the situation was by going out of my comfort zone. Going to new places with friends, talking to new people, and trying new sports all brought me out of my comfort zone. When I went to school in Texas, I was a quiet and shy teenager that did whatever was comfortable for me. This usually meant going to school, not talking with anyone, then going home. When I moved to Minnesota, however, I decided that I would try to be a more friendly and talkative person. It was tough for a few weeks, but, eventually, I was able to bring myself out of my comfort zone. Without being talkative to strangers in school and putting myself in new situations, I would not have adjusted the way that I did. Although coming out of my comfort zone was initially a stressful process, I am confident that it in turn lead me to making more friends, which helped me look forward to school more. In the long run, this helped the stress of the situation.

It’s no question that moving to a new high school can be very stressful for a student. The novelty of the situation can be hard to adjust to and can cause conflict in an already stressful time for teenagers. However, the transition does not have to be as daunting of a challenge as it seems. As I have shown, however, is that there are strategies to make the transition easier and less stress ridden. Not every new school has to be a terrifying concept for students; it can be a great opportunity for someone to overcome a new obstacle and conquer their fears in the process.