MENTAL HEALTH FOR TEENS: BACK TO SCHOOL TIPS

Heading back to school can be a mixed bag of emotions for teens. Teenagers often look forward to being around friends again. Yet, at the same time, they may dread the expected homework and studying that comes along with a new school year.

Fortunately, creating good habits at the start of the school year can reduce unnecessary time spent on schoolwork and encourage teens to live a life full of new experiences and joy.

Here are three tips and habits to make this school year less overwhelming and more productive, leading to better mental health for teens.

TIP #1: ESTABLISH AN ENJOYABLE ROUTINE

Establishing a routine is crucial for everyone, especially for teens and their mental health. Humans are creatures of habit—we develop routines that help us streamline workflow and anticipate expectations. But if we aren’t conscious of the habits and routines we build, we can form unhealthy habits that stay with us for years or decades, lowering our quality of life.

The start of school provides an opportunity to create new habits and develop routines, ideal for the mental health of your teen. This not only helps them get their work done efficiently, but helps them increase their happiness as well. There are two major habits to focus on to create a routine that helps them get their work done, while leaving plenty of time to do things they enjoy.

• Setting a consistent sleep schedule
• Doing homework immediately after school

CREATING A CONSISTENT SLEEP SCHEDULE

Sleep is one of the most important contributors to the recovery and flourishment of the mind and body. Creating and sticking to a sleep schedule with a consistent bedtime and wake-up time helps regulate the body’s circadian rhythm. It also promotes many healthy bodily functions that are beneficial for teens and their mental health. A consistent sleep schedule also helps teens (and adults):

• Get higher quality rest
• Improve their decision-making abilities
• Improve their ability to regulate emotions
• Improve their ability to learn and remember new information

When teens don’t get enough sleep, they can experience:

• Decreased ability to regulate emotions and mental health
• Increased irritability and frustration
• Decreased ability to focus
• Impaired memory

To optimize their sleep schedule and obtain the greatest mental and physical benefits, teens should aim for at least 8 hours of sleep each night. This may mean 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., 11 p.m. to 7 a.m., or any other 8-hour time frame that fits your teen’s schedule. The more consistent they get with their schedule, the more the body can get deep rest and regulate bodily processes in a healthy way.

Additionally, removing screen time one to two hours before bed will drastically improve your teen’s ability to fall asleep easily and get good quality rest. Consider creating a family-wide agreement to stop using devices an hour before bedtime. If the family does it together, it will be a group effort where you can all keep each other accountable. But if you enforce it on your teens while not following it yourself, you aren’t leading by example, and they will eventually begin sneaking in screen time before bed.

DOING HOMEWORK IMMEDIATELY AFTER SCHOOL

This one habit can help teens save hours of distracted time spent on their homework or studying. When they get home from school, their mind is still familiarized with the learning environment. Therefore, going straight to homework, or taking a restful break and then doing homework, is often an easy transition. Once they finish their work, they have the entire rest of the day to hang out with friends or participate in activities they look forward to. This also promotes a great feeling of accomplishment, which can improve mental health for teens.

TIP #2: CREATE A DISTRACTION-FREE HOMEWORK/STUDY SPACE

Homework is an excellent opportunity for teens to get into the flow and truly learn the information they are presented with, but many teens do homework while checking their phone or watching a show at the same time. This drastically increases the amount of time it takes for them to complete their work, and significantly decreases their ability to focus and retain the information they are learning.

The best way for your teens to get their homework done fast and effectively is to designate a distraction-free environment where they can focus on their homework. This means:

• Putting the phone out of sight
• Finding a space where family members won’t interrupt
• Creating a space, ideally not in their bedroom, where their mind can go into focus mode out of habit

Research shows that teens are much more efficient with their homework when it is done consistently in an environment where they don’t spend their free time. When a teen does homework at the same desk that they play video games, the mind can’t designate the area for one task. The mind ends up being much more prone to distraction. Their rest and relaxation space begins to be associated with homework, which is never beneficial to the mental health of teens. But when your teen has an environment specifically for studying, it is easier for the brain to habitually go into focus mode when they sit down.

Find a quiet, comfortable place where your teen can consistently do their homework without their phone or other distractions around. They will see a drastic improvement in their ability to focus and learn new information.

TIP #3: MAKE TIME TO DO SOMETHING YOU LOVE EVERY DAY!

A great way to focus on mental health for teens is adding enjoyment to their daily routine. Helping your teen set aside time every day to do something they love will help them decrease their stress, increase their enjoyment of life, and give them more motivation to excel.

What your teen loves to do is going to be specific to them, but encourage any activities they enjoy, such as:

• Exercising
• Playing a sport
• Drawing, painting, or writing
• Spending quality time with friends

Video games and watching TV may be okay in moderation. However, these activities tend to be more passive. Overindulgence of these pleasures can lead to decreased life satisfaction and lower self-esteem. It’s always best to encourage your teen to engage in active hobbies they love!