Stressed Teens - Family Resources

Today we are sharing a great family resource from StressedTeens.com - The Stressed Teen's Toolbox is chockful of activities and tips for connecting and guiding your teen with their mental health... and yours! Founded in 2004, the Stressed Teens website is highly focused on the science of mindfulness-based stress reduction.

So what will you find?

👉 5 tips to build a mindful relationship with your teen

👉 A family guide on mindfulness and positive neuroplasticity

👉 An article on managing high school stress

👉 Community and School Programs

👉 Family Self-Care activities

👉 Mindfulness audio practice

👉 Tips for managing social media...

and so much more. Take some time to really go through the family resource page and see what resources can help build up and connect within your family.

📲 www.stressedteens.com/resources-for-families

For additional teen resources check out our own SUAJ Youth Toolkit at https://www.standupaj.org/youthtoolkit

#standupaj #prevention #mentalhealth #selfcare #selflove #wellness #healthliving #goodcleanfun #bekindtoyourself #selfcareisntselfish

Know Your Feelings!

Take a moment to clear your mind, close your eyes, and take a deep breath. Then ask yourself — how are you feeling right now? Come up with one or several one word answers to describe the emotions you're feeling.

Often one word might stand out a little more. Does one feeling stand out? Sometimes there a few. It's possible to even have opposite feelings at the same time. For example, excited and nervous.

This simple practice is a great way to be aware of your emotions.

Being more aware of your emotions is a skill that can help you:

• know yourself better

• feel better about things and cope better

• be less self-critical

• pause instead of act on difficult emotions & more

Kidshealth.org outlines five ways to practice being more aware of your emotions:

1. Notice and name your feelings.

2. Track one emotion. Pick one emotion. Track it all day. Notice how often you feel it.

3. Learn new words for feelings.

4. Keep a feelings journal. Take a few minutes each day to write about how you feel and why.

5. Notice feelings in art, songs, and movies.

"Remind yourself that all your emotions are normal. But how you act on emotions matters a lot. When you know your emotions, you're better able to make wise choices about how to act — no matter what you're feeling."

Read the article for full details and more information on this great technique here: https://www.kidshealth.org/en/teens/emotional-awareness.html#catbest-self

It's Okay To Say NO!

Why are boundaries so important? They give us permission to say NO and not place everything on our shoulders. Boundaries also help us draw a line in the sand of what is acceptable and what is not. When someone crosses that line we need to take care of ourselves by letting them know and making that line a bit clearer.

That being said, here are a few tips on helping you set boundaries as a form of self-care.

1. Do a check in with yourself and write down your priorities.

2. Allow space and time for you to take a pause - especially after a request.

3. Here's the tough one - don't be scared to say NO!

4. No doesn't require an explanation, so try not to over defend yourself. Boundaries are necessary!

5. Don't let guilt consume you during those times you say no. Remind yourself that someone else's survival doesn't weigh solely on your back.

Want more details and examples? Check out the full article for more: http://www.dananelsoncounseling.com/blog/self-care-setting-healthy-boundaries/