The past one year has thrown up unprecedented challenges. Maintaining good mental health has become a challenge as countries went into lockdown to preserve physical health. Long hours of work and study from home have come with challenges as work and personal time boundaries got blurred.
Previous research has indicated how long- term stress and its related disorders can negatively influence a student's performance as it hinders thinking and learning (Barnes et al., 2003, Fischer, 2006, Mendelson et al., 2010). Students need to learn how to navigate their way in the world today.
As an educationist, having an awareness of the havoc stress causes in students, this area is close to my heart. Stress is the most common trigger in both migraine and Tension-type headaches (Fumal et al., 2008). Stress causes tension in the muscles, and other body parts aggravating the pain. Adolescents with migraine and aura exhibited a greater tendency to suicidal ideation independent of depressive symptoms (Wang et al., 2009). In 2015, a research study by Mission Australia reported that almost 40 per cent of 15- to 19-year-olds were worried about their ability to cope with stress. Exams, high expectations, social pressures, and perception of unpreparedness for life challenges are the drivers of high-stress levels. However, the youth shies from seeking help. In fact, in many societies, seeking help for mental health issues is still a taboo.
With Youth having high exposure to technology and screen time leading to greater isolation, mental health concerns and increasing socio-economic imparity in health, new morbidities in adolescents called the 'millennia- morbidities' is being observed. These lead to stress-related problems such as chronic headaches, abdominal pain, anxiety, depression, and other emotional issues that often respond poorly to standard medications. Regulating stress response has been found to facilitate overall adjustment and improve social and emotional growth.
Healthcare providers need to note this trend and move from responding with medications to teaching the young populace coping strategies and adaptability. An increasing body of research has proven the efficacy of mind-body therapies like mindfulness and clinical hypnosis as non-pharmacologic techniques in dealing with stress and its related issues sans side effects of medications.
Studies show such therapies help foster effective connections among the relevant prefrontal structures in adolescents, thus, controlling risk-taking tendencies, reducing stress, depression, anxiety, pain, and promoting emotional and physical wellbeing. Hypnosis has been an overlooked modality of intervention. Modern hypnosis's permissive nature can utilize the natural hypnotic abilities that teens bring to the clinical encounter. Adolescents enter the hypnotic state with ease and thus are highly responsive to therapeutic suggestions. Hypnosis can help rewire the brain and teach them to calm their minds and deal with the frustration or anger by channelling it positively.
With the Covid challenge far from over, it's even more important now to focus on the mental health of the youth and the populace in general. If you are struggling with stress and anxiety, do reach out for support. I am a certified clinical hypnotherapist, CBT based mindfulness practitioner and energy healer. If any of these modalities appeal to you, reach out to me at