Do you know that one out of four Indonesian

people are young people according to BPS-

Statistics Indonesia in 2019?
Among of them is us, the high school students.

We are more than just a number, however.

We are as the 21st century learners are expected and prepared to be

more capable to compete in global economy and to be effective
global citizens. 

Yet with COVID-19 cases rising, our lives has been rapidly

changing. School closures and social distancing force us to lose
our routines at schools, to adjust to online learning, and make
certain level of social isolation.
According to a U-Report poll conducted in August 2020 by
UNICEF, 53 per cent of 600 participants said they feel pressured
to stay productive during the pandemic. 33 per cent said the
stress has led to a lack of concentration during online learning,
while 25 per cent said they feel easily irritated, angry or upset. 
This represents what approximately 4.78 million high school
students in Indonesia are faced with every day, managing these
mental health challenges.
What are some ideas for dealing with
stress from daily tasks and burdens
during the pandemic?
Firstly, we have to recognise our stress
In psychology, stress is a feeling of emotional strain and
pressure.
Stress is connected with our thinking brain and survival brain
according to Elizabeth A. Stanley.
Our thinking brain is responsible for “thinking slow” which is
our conscious decision-making and reasoning. When we read or
hear some information, our thinking brain will compare,
analyze, plan, and decide.
The thinking brain gets anxious when it doesn’t have enough
information to predict what’s going to happen next. It hates
uncertainty, such as the spread of COVID-19 and difficult online
tasks given by our teachers.
In contrast, our survival brain performs our “thinking fast”
which is our unconscious threat- assement process. Its strategy
for protecting us is quite simple: Approach opportunities and
avoid threats or danger or pain.
The survival brain will react immediately for example, you felt
very sad when you found your parents fought due financial
issue during the pandemic or you felt anxious and worry on the
workload of online classes.
Secondly, we should help our thinking brain and survival brain
to support each other to release stress.
How?
By practicing Self- care and Digital Learning strategies as I found
on www.dosomething.org.
When we do the things that take care of our souls- and our
bodies- we are practicing self-care. This assists our
survival brain feel safe.
 Getting enough sleep at least 8 hours a day will help
the survival brain’s recovery process including
reducing stress
 Doing regular exercises such as go for walk or go out for

runs can boost your mood and allow our body to discharge
excess stress hormones.
 Giving yourself the space to really feel the stress by crying
it out, talking it through someone, writing it down, or
listening to the music to cool you down.
 Finding a hobby that can ground you such as, cooking,
gardening, dancing, digital photography, designing memes
are among of them.

Turning now to Digital learning strategies.

You need a good time management to reduce stress on online
classes by:
 keeping reminders and alarms on your phone to help give
yourself plenty of time to complete these assignments and
prevent them from piling up
 Starting a habit tracker by listing things you are going to do
and checking off if you got the item done. It gives you a
sense of accomplishment when you get to put the
checkmark on the habit tracker

You should also find some sources and helps. Some of these
strategies are by:
 Reading books, articles online and watching videos on the
topic
 Asking your teachers by online chatting or zoom meeting
  creating a group chat for all of the students, where you all
could ask questions and remind each other about due
dates

To conclude, stress during the pandemic can be manageable if

you know how to help both brains to feel safe. I hope you may
choose some practices that fit your need.
In the words of Richard Bach, “Sooner or later, those who win
are those who think they can”