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Hello, and thank you for your question! I’ll try to answer the best I can. 

Stress isn’t a rare disease of some sort, everyone experiences it. Some more than the others. With stress comes up many other side effects, such as anxiety, depression, and school problems. According to the American Institute of Stress, 77% of people in America deal with stress that impacts their everyday lives. 

First things off though, if you do feel anxious or depressed though, and are having a hard time currently doing normal tasks in your life, please contact our school counselors, or other professionals such as therapists, psychologists, psychiatrists, and social workers. Know that they’re here to help, and will do a better job than me when explaining how to deal with mental health. 

Now, back to dealing with stress. There are many ways to deal with stress, however, my main advice has to be finding something that’ll help you calm down, a de-stressor of some sort. Whether it be a hobby or just a fidget toy, it should be a go-to thing to do that’ll help ease your mind.

Some examples might be drawing, or reading a book. Other times, having a fidget like a putty toy helps out too. It’s up to you to find out what that thing is, and use it to calm yourself down.

Other things that can help are exercising and just stretching. Sometimes, just moving around and doing something can help stress, helping take your mind off things and improving your health overall. Even going outside and taking a small walk can be beneficial, and is something I often do these days to help keep my head clear. I know some people also like to do meditation, so look into that too, if you’re interested.

It can be to deal with stress, and in times like these, I guess we all struggle to try to make our way through the school year. Talking with friends can help you out a lot, whether it be about your problems, or just having a casual chat. Having someone that’ll listen is probably one of the best stress relievers out there. And again, our lovely school counselors, Mr. Bronson, Mrs. Walberg, and Mrs. Relson, are all here to help you out. Feel free to talk to them about anything, from struggles with homework and more personal topics, if you feel comfortable enough. I’ve talked to them before, and they’re good if you just need someone that’ll listen to you.

I hope this helped you out, it was a pleasure answering this question.

Sincerely,

Apollo

Surprisingly,  we actually had a couple of people ask this question, me and Auggie both, with different variations ranging from family members and friends to just other people in general, so I’ll be attempting to answer all questions here. Thanks to my friends who helped me answer this question, couldn’t have done it without you.

Asking a few of my friends and such, I guess my main tip to anyone coming out is probably to be patient and don’t try to push yourself. It’s best to come out when you feel comfortable and feel safe. Don’t force anything, and just be yourself, I guess. Again, you don’t have to come out if you don’t want too. You are yourself, and nothings going to change that. It’s up to you to choose who you tell, and who you don’t.

When it comes to coming out to your parents, I guess just consider how they’d react. If you feel you’re in a safe environment, find a time to sit down with them, and tell them that you have something important to share. It can be hard to come out to your parents, considering they’re probably the people you most want to accept you, so take your time and again, feel comfortable.

With friends, I suggest doing the same as with my advice with parents. They’re basically selected families, right? Again, make sure you’re ready before you go and talk to them. If they don’t accept you for who you are, I wouldn’t consider keeping them as friends for much longer.

I suggest asking your other LGBT friends how they came out, a first-hand experience is often the best advice you can actually get. There, you can get tips on how to come out to your other friends, or family, and such. I can only give so many tips I know, so I highly suggest asking them first.

This was a fun question to answer, and thanks again to my friends who helped me with this! I hope I answered your question, and good luck!

Sincerely,

Apollo

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