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HSC exams have kicked off in New South Wales. Year 12 students across the country will be following with their final assessments over the next few weeks. It is arguably the most stressful part of the year for school leavers and their families who are trying to help them through it. Jessica Belcher is a research fellow at Macquarie University with a focus on academic stress among adolescents and the treatment of anxiety. She says that this period can be overwhelming for teenagers.

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00:01I think that it can be really stressful for Year 12 students at this time of year, especially
00:07coming up to all the exams I've got on and balancing life with those exams.
00:13So yeah, I think it can be a really stressful time.
00:17It's more than just the exam for them, it's what am I going to do in the future and will
00:22I get into the course I want to get into, what's it going to look like, so there's
00:28that pressure for the future.
00:31If you're a parent taking the pressure off at home, just reminding them that you're proud
00:37of them for the effort they've put in, not necessarily the mark that they get or the
00:41course they get into, but how hard they try and that effort, I definitely think that encouraging
00:50them to have healthy habits, encouraging them to eat healthily, encouraging them to sleep
00:56well and getting that good night's rest.
00:59We know that that consolidates the information they learn, but also allows them to approach
01:04the day with a more of a positive attitude and to help with stress, encouraging them to
01:10do exercise, maybe see friends.
01:13So yeah, there's a few practical things.
01:16And also, if you notice your friend or your child having unhelpful thoughts and negative
01:23thoughts, like I'll fail or I can't do this, maybe just giving them a bit of a nudge and
01:29saying, well, is that really realistic based on your past performance?
01:35Yeah.
01:35Yeah.
01:35So, so just, yeah, from those three, those three things, I think that can really help.
01:41Definitely an adolescence is definitely better when they come up with the idea themselves
01:46or if you're modeling that behavior.
01:48So if you notice that they're, they're really stressed, maybe asking them, Hey, do you want
01:52to go for a walk?
01:53Or can you help me cook dinner?
01:55Getting them to do something just to break that cycle if they're feeling really, really stressed,
01:59getting them to do something active, getting them out of that in their head sort of stress
02:04moment.
02:05I definitely think a healthy life balance is really important.
02:08So just recognizing that, yeah, these exams are important, but you know, they're not the
02:13be all and end all.
02:15It's, it's not going to be a huge catastrophe.
02:17You will be able to cope if things don't go your way and enjoy the time too.
02:23So even though it's a stressful time and you've got a lot to do, trying to still keep up that
02:31contact with your friends, keep up those things that you enjoy because it's an exciting time
02:37of your life as well as a stressful time of your life.
02:39It's, you know, you probably look back at it and, and think, Oh my gosh, I loved that
02:44because I got to spend lots of time with my friends.
02:47Um, and I got to face those exams and get through them.
02:52And I think that that's a fantastic thing to be able to look back and realize that you enjoyed
02:57some of those moments too.
02:59Resilience is built from challenges and good things can come from not doing as well
03:05as you hoped or not getting into the course.
03:07So, you know, when one door closes, another one opens kind of thing.
03:11Yeah.
03:11I think that there's still light at the end of the tunnel.

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