How 30,000 Young People Are Helping Each Other Through These Especially Tough Times

While you’re physical distancing, you and your friends might be feeling nervous, frustrated, or disconnected. But you don’t have to feel hopeless or alone. That’s why 31,455 DoSomething members have signed up to make a difference in young people’s mental health nationwide. They’re sharing their tips on getting through these particularly stressful times, and we’re using their advice to create a first-of-its-kind mental health guide that’s for students, by students. DoSomething members have already sent in 53,712 anti-stress tips so far through our New State of Mind campaign, powered by Blue Shield of California -- read a few of them below!

1) Harrison, 17

“I create two plans whenever I'm feeling particularly stressed out. One, dealing with the cause in a short term manner, the other being what I can do in the long run. For a short term solution, the best thing I can do for myself is to keep me busy. This usually entails cleaning everything in sight, maybe put on some upbeat music while doing it. For the long term, I think about the root cause of the stress, and what I can do about that root to make sure it does not happen again.”

2) Lily, 18

“When I'm feeling stressed, the first thing I do is let myself feel that stress. I know that if I try to ignore it, I'll just feel worse later. I'll normally let myself cry about the things I'm stressed about, and then once I've properly felt my emotions I'll begin doing things that make me happy. This means Facetiming my friends, watching a funny show, or learning a new skill like crocheting. If I'm still feeling pent up I'll exercise or do some cleaning to help feel productive and in control.”

3) Jireh, 17

“When I’m feeling stressed out, I put my music on blast and dance my stress away. I cancel everything out, it’s as if all my problems get lost in the music and overshadowed. The best way to keep your mind stress free is to take your mind away from the stressor. Stay busy, and have fun.”

4) Zykierra, 17

“I unplug! I turn off all of my news sources on my phone and try to watch movies or TV shows or read books that I know have a happy ending just to pick myself up. I drink tea and relax and sometimes do an intense (or light, it doesn’t really matter) workout to take my mind off of things.”

5) Gabrielle, 20

“When I feel stressed or anxious I find it effective to talk to someone about it. Sometimes this person is my mom, family member, boyfriend, or friends from school. Depending on what the topic is, is who I go to. I find comfort in getting it off my chest and also knowing I have someone who can offer me advice on the situation and encourage me to stop stressing about something I will get through.”

6) Megan, 20

“I have been known to stress bake. I once made three apple pies because I was very stressed out. Preparing the ingredients and having a tangible success gives me a sense of control.”

7) Anastasia, 19

“I have found that stress, anxiety, and other negative emotions often mean you take less care of yourself and as a result feel worse. You become stuck in a terrible endless loop. To break the loop I recommend a plant buddy (or ten). Start with a simple low maintenance plant like a succulent, and while you take care of it, take care of yourself. Give it water, give yourself water. Give it sun, give yourself sun. Work your way up to more demanding fruit and veggie plants for healthy eating too!”

8) Joseph, 19

“Try to put things into perspective. There's a quote by one of the old Stoics of Rome that I refer to. ‘Nothing is bad except our perception of it.’ With this in mind, it helps to look at things at a different angle and to see where this is actually good, or at least not as bad as it looks. That, and I would say trying to not worry about things outside of our control. Things within my control, I try to hammer in and fix if needing fixing. If it's not, I try not to put unnecessary energy into it.”

9) Sabrin, 17

“One effective thing that I do every single day is have a gratitude journal where I write down at least three things that I’m grateful for. It reminds me of the things that I already have in life and enjoy them. There are people in this world who are struggling right now and I know that I could be doing worse, but knowing that I have a place to live and a family who can support me is truly a great blessing. A journal to write down my feelings helped me a lot because I reflected on my own life.”

10) Patricia, 22

“One of the most effective things I do for self-care is to have a good cry and let all the anxiety out. For me, I tend to bottle everything in, including my tears, which just helps my anxiety grow more. Once I allow myself to cry, it feels as if everything negative is being washed away outside of my body through my tears and I no longer have a headache from holding it all in. It may sound weird, but trust me, a good cry really does help.“

11) Destiny, 17

“One effective thing I do for self-care is meditation. When I'm feeling overwhelmed, meditation really helps me relax and calm down. It helps me focus on the now and the present moment. It somewhat clears my mind and I just feel my whole body relax. If I don't have time to meditate, breathing exercises are also really good when it comes to calming down my stress. It helps me clear my mind, relax, and just live in the present moment. It reminds me that the stress is temporary and I'm going to be ok.”