Bluestreak Books partnered with me on this post Four Ways Parents Can Help Their Teen De-stress Over the College Application Process
When I look at my 17-year-old daughter, I’m still slightly shocked by the fact that I have a 17-year-old daughter who is now in the process of looking at colleges. This young woman, with so many opinions, feelings, questions, and, yes –the all too frequent eye rolls – is about to enter the next phase of her life and prepare for college I get it, life as a 17-year-old with all this pressure to get a perfect score on her SAT and manage all her current curriculum requirements as an IB student while balancing her track team meets and all her other internships is enough to feel like she is smack dab inside a pressure cooker that is about to spontaneously combust.
I want to imbue her with confidence that will carry her through these next months of choosing I want to arm her with stress-reducing techniques that will sustain her and be her soft place to fall as she prepares for the college application process. If you, too, are a parent struggling with ways to support your teen during this highly pressurized phase of their life, then keep reading for my Four Ways Parents Can Help Their Teen De-stress Over the College Application Process. These tips will help teens see a new side of themselves as they prepare for this next phase of their academic careers and beyond.
Four Ways Parents Can Help Their Teen De-stress Over the College Application Process
#1 GET ORGANIZED and Set college goals with your teen, then give them the tools to get excited and organized!
The only thing standing between you and that college life is figuring out where you might want to go, completing your applications, writing a killer essay, scoring solid test scores, shining in your activities, getting glowing recommendations, and . . . okay, that’s a lot. But even though being accepted into college can seem big and overwhelming, it doesn’t have to be.
That’s where SEVENTEEN: COLLEGE GOALS by the trusted editors of Seventeen magazine! comes in. This stress-free guide—part-planner, part-journal—will help walk you through the step-by-step process of applying to colleges. There are pages filled with practical cheat sheets, handy life hacks, thoughtful tips, fun quizzes, inspiring quotes from your favorite celebs and leaders, and prompts that will push you to self-reflect. (After all, that’s what college essays are all about!) This way, you can freak out less about if you’ll get in, and actually start thinking about which school’s offer you’re going to accept.
SEVENTEEN: COLLEGE GOALS is definitely one of Four Ways Parents Can Help Their Teen De-stress Over the College Process.
#2 Introduce your teen to the art of Meditation.
Meditation helps you learn to center yourself, limit the distractions your brain constantly comes up with, and control your emotions. These are all great skills to master if you’re looking to tackle the college process. With meditation, teens will become better at shelving the anxieties and concerns that pop up while they’re in the thick of the college process.
#3 Take a day off to clear your head.
Everyone needs a mental health break to recharge and re-energize. Whether that means your teen needs to spend a day binge watching a new TV series, or just chilling at a day spa with you and her besties. Remember that she needs time to rest her brain and thought process over the college application process and realize that everything will be all right as long as she takes it one day at a time.
#4 Talk about the big picture of university experience
Remind your teen that the whole point of going through the college application process is so that she can have a great college experience. Remind your teen that college is just one part of their BIG FUTURE . So do you have any stress reducing techniques to share?
And the best news to help your teen de stress over the college application process I’m hosting a giveaway! One (1) winner receives:
- Copy of SEVENTEEN: COLLEGE GOALS;
- a “Good Vibes” pen set;
- and “It’s All Gonna Happen For You” pouch!
- For a chance to win Leave a comment here with one of your stress reducing techniques! Good luck giveaway ends May 30th 2018
GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED! CONGRATS to our winner Brittany!
OMG I’ve been falling your blog for years and I can’t believe how grown-up your daughter looks! She’s so beautiful!
My stress-reducer is taking a walk.
I meant “following your blog”.
These are great tips! Organization is definitely a big one. If my mom hadn’t been so super organized and retentive about the whole thing, I would’ve had a meltdown.
Oh gosh. I remember the college application portion of my life all too well. It was absolutely horrifying! Anything we can do to make it easier is always a help.
These are excellent tips. Getting your teen organized has got to be the utmost priority. Makes things go much smoother.
I remember how stressful these days were and I can’t imagine now, when everything is like 100x more stressful than it used to be! Your daughter is so lucky to have you there to be a support system!
These are really awesome tips on how to help teen de-stress over the college application process! I am not there yet, but when I am, I am going to be thankful I read these tips!
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Your daughter looks so much like you. Good luck to her and tell her to have a great summer!!
My daughter just finished her freshman year of college so we remember how stressful college applications were. We spent hours a day going over everything. It’s really nerve wracking!
I really like the idea of setting college goals. I wish that was something I did – it may have painted a better picture of what to choose for my major and what extracurricular activities to participate in.
College application process can be really stressing for teens. Glad you shared these ideas.
I love that Seventeen has this to make sure that the teens have a better way to deal with their college applications! I’m sure it’s going to make life easier for them and keep things organized as well.
My stress-reducing techniques are to stay organized, not wait till the last minute to do things, and a talk walks to help reduce stress .
Andysavi.Mom@gmail.com
Getting fresh air! Going outside for a walk always helps me 🙂
Fitness walking is my stress reducer.
One great way to reduce stress for any huge project is to allow much more time than you think you need to complete the process. Start looking at colleges and major./career choices about the second year in high school. If possible, have your high school student attend summer courses at a college they are considering. These were excellent hints that helped our daughter choose a college and a major.
My stress-reducing technique is to exercise daily-even a short walk outdoors
Oh wow seems as though we both have beautiful red heads. My biggest stress reducing technique is to make sure to take time to step back and get away from it for a little whether it be a lunch out, or just a movie at home without electronics.
Music does wonders, I throw my headphones on and take a break from the world!
The best way I like to reduce stress is by going on long runs. It clears my head and helps me to get rid of the stress of the day.
Read a good book!! Thanks for the chance.
A nice, hot bubble bath reduces my stress.