An end of term message from our School Counsellor.

A final chance for me to reach out to you all, as we approach the end the school year.

I want to wish you a happy, safe summer. At the end of a school term or school year, I always encourage everybody to try to take steps towards looking after ourselves over the weeks to come. ‘Looking after yourself’ will mean something different to each of us. What works for me may not work for you and vice versa, and I think it is always worthwhile giving thought to just what the actions and activities may be, that help you to feel good – and then making the time to do them in a deliberate way.

Pandemic Brain

During the last 18 months, have you sometimes found yourself feeling distracted, overwhelmed and struggling to focus? If so, you’re not alone. You might be experiencing ‘pandemic brain.’

It’s official – living through a global pandemic has altered our brains, experts are saying. The prolonged and multiple fears, stressors and disruptions of the pandemic and multiple lockdowns have had a real effect on our cognitive functioning. Chronic (ie ongoing) stress has been found to kill brain cells and even shrink parts of our brains – in particular, the part responsible for memory, focus and learning – probably three of the things you need the most, as a young person in school.

I know, grim reading, isn’t it?

BUT do read on – because there’s great news. The brain is highly plastic and therefore extremely capable of repair. We can reverse the changes and regain our pre-pandemic brains.

We can mend ourselves.

Three of the best ways to lower the levels of stress chemical cortisol in our bodies, to help our brains begin to bounce back are: exercise, listening to music, and practicing some mindfulness. So, its not too complicated – getting active, getting tuneful, and taking the time to stop, be present and live in the moment.

What better time to try it out, than summer, when we might hopefully have a little more time and if we’re lucky, some warm weather. Here’s three very familiar apps, to get you started:

Exercise, Music, Mindfulness.

Habits Versus Goals

I was reading an article recently on habit change far outweighing goal setting, in terms of effective, embedded behaviour change outcomes. Daily or regular habits can be seen as algorithms operating in the background of our lives, leading to different choices and influencing our actions.

Goals have an endpoint, which seems obvious, but can sometimes be the pitfall. If the goal is ‘I want to run a marathon’ once the marathon is done, the reward might be to have a long break from running, which may mean we never go back to it – whereas habits can continue indefinitely and bring the possibility that we may even overshoot and over deliver on our aspirations.

So – some examples.

A goal might be ‘I want to read 50 books this year’ and a habit change might be ‘I’m going to carry a book with me everywhere I go.’
A goal might be ‘I want to write a novel over the summer holiday’ and a habit change might be ‘I’m going to write 250 words every day.’

So – what I’m taking from these ideas is that impactful change is possible and perhaps even more likely, through small, regular actions. Do you have any changes that you’d like to make?

Sources of help

Going forwards, throughout the summer, if you’re feeling low or alone, consider Kooth. It’s a free, online counselling service. Kooth has two online counselling platforms – one for university students, and one for young people. Kooth is a monitored, safe and anonymous service where you can log your mood, participate in group forum discussions, set goals and access online counselling with qualified professionals.

If you’re in need of urgent help, the following agencies are good places to turn:

Get in touch at l.arthur@nor.gdst.net if you want to arrange a time to talk in September, or any time in the future. You know where I am.

Take care of yourselves, and each other, and have a wonderful, wonderful summer.