STRICTLY TWEENS
Counselor’s Corner
Worry, anxiety, and stress are normal parts of being human. Most of the time
they come in harmless phases and can include situations like:
“If I don’t get good grades in middle school, I won’t get into honors classes in
high school. Then I won’t get accepted to a good college and won’t get a good
job.”
“Mom and Dad are fighting all the time lately. I wonder if they’ll get a divorce.
What will I do?”
“I really don’t like playing basketball. I wish I could just do something I want to
do instead, but Mom would be so disappointed in me.”
“I can’t believe she told him I like him more than a friend. She promised she
wouldn’t say anything! I’m so embarrassed. There’s no way I’m going to school
today.”
When the worry starts to feel like it’s too much, you might try talking to some-
one about it. Most times adults do a pretty good job of listening and helping to
figure things out, but sometimes the message can come across like this:
“Let it go.”
“Be positive.”
“Think about all the reasons you don’t have to worry.”
“Get over it.”
“Stop being such a worrier.”
“It’s not that big of a deal.”
“It’s all going to work out just fine. You’ll see.”
Then you might start thinking, “Uhhhhh, yeah adults. Thanks for the advice.
If it were that easy, I would have done something about it a long time ago!
Sheesh!”