By Kayla Samimi
Executive News Editor
Students have been utilizing the new stress room, which is located in the Mira Costa health office and has been offered for the past several months, in order to alleviate their stress and anxiety during the school day.
Health office nurse Hedy Deck proposed the idea of the stress room to Costa Principal Dr. Ben Dale this school year in hopes of reducing student stress, she said. The school and district approved her proposal several months ago.
“Before, students often came in full of anxiety, and the only thing we could tell them to do was to sit down and stare at the blank walls around the health office room,” Deck said. “This obviously did not help.”
The purpose of the stress room is to give students a safe environment where they feel they can relax and not worry, Deck said.
Photos: The stress room is located in the health office for all students to utilize.
“I think that the stress room was really relaxing, and I almost felt like I was in a normal bedroom at home,” junior Camilia Rowshan said. “It was definitely a warm, welcoming place to enter.”
While spending time in the room, students have the option of lying down on the provided bed or coloring in several drawing books, among other de-stressing activities, Deck said. She believes that when students are overwhelmed with obligations or personal issues, they should have a relaxing atmosphere available for them to visit at school.
“Having different options to alleviate your stress is a good idea,” junior Jayin Patel said. “Everyone has different methods of dealing with stress, and the options in the stress room ensure that most people find their fit.”
Link: Discover the different ways stress can impact high schoolers.
Deck does not believe that students have been abusing the room to miss their class periods; instead, those who spend time in the room do so out of genuine anxiety. On average, several students visit the stress room each day, but the overall number tends to vary, Deck said.
All students who enter the room will receive an excused absence for the class period(s) that they missed. There is no limit to the number of students allowed in the room or the time a student can spend in the room, Deck said.
Link: Read an article from CNN about reducing student stress.
“I have seen multiple students come into the room at once and begin to talk to each other,” Deck said. “They leave feeling way better since they were able to discuss their feelings with another peer.”
Deck hopes to maintain the stress room throughout future school years. As long as she feels that students leave the room feeling better, she will support it.
“I can tell when a student is not being honest about their anxiety,” Deck said. “But this room is definitely helping some students, and that’s really what matters.”
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