Help![Update]

You should tell someone you trust about this stress. Don't let it get out of control. Someone at the school if it's difficult to talk to your parents. This is important.

PMO is probably not helping, especially the P part.

Sounds like you're putting a lot of pressure on yourself. Maybe learn some meditation techniques. Become the observer and let the thoughts and feelings come and go without judgement.

Read the book linked in my signature, and talk about it here if you want.

Tell someone you trust who has some life experience about your stress if it's overwhelming you. Someone in real life. We're okay, but we're just Internet figments of your imagination.

 

I'm in no way a meditation expert. You might want to start a thread asking that question so people more knowledgeable than me can respond.

But the idea is to spend some time every day letting your thoughts clear and giving your mind a rest. One method I use to experience the feelings of an event I'm recalling is to visualise it without the voices of the people involved. The words are often just distractions and not important. But instead I focus on the feelings I had and am now re-experiencing. I don't judge myself or the people or the feelings. I simply observe.

That's just my own do it yourself meditation though.

 

The other important reason to meditate is that it's a sort of training for your brain to help deal with life and stress in real time, so you can stay in control, rather than letting the stress control you.

 

My recommendation is to make a schedule and fill it with work. If you find studying difficult and stressful, begin to work at a rate that allows you not only to keep up with your classes but to get ahead. Studying can be stressful but it is less so if you are doing it early, when your exam is a week or two away and you already have the material covered and are just reviewing. Reduce the amount of time you spend watching tv or otherwise relaxing and start becoming accustomed to work (develop self-discipline). I have found that a great deal of my stress here at college was the result of my procrastination and having to do things last minute, fretting about whether I have the time to get it done. This will help you a great deal in college, if that is your plan.

I also recommend that you take a year off between high school and college. Spend it working and become accustomed to working harder. I wish I had done this and worked as an EMT for a year before college. Also, don’t underestimate the power of exercise as an anxiolytic and confidence booster.

These are steps that I have taken toward self improvement and I have seen real progress. But I recognize that these steps may not be for everyone. Give this a real shot, but decide for yourself whether it is helping you.

 

Know the difference between relaxation and escapism. Escapism is not always relaxing. If you're "downtime" is just switching from study to a pleasantly stressful thing, i.e. another stressful thing, like computer gaming or PMOing, then you could be over-taxing your dopamine system, and never actually relaxing.

See Stress in This Article.

 

There are ways to manage it. I really recommend setting some time aside for default mode (see the article you read). And make sure you're not worrying about your life during that time. That's where the meditation techniques come in.

Do you have a student counsellor or a mentor you can talk to? You really have to keep an eye on stress and take it seriously man.