— 2023-2024 — GREYHOUND — MEDIA
GREYSCALE REPORT
TABLE OF CONTENTS p/3
Intro to Emotional Health Trisanee Siharath
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Indicators for Poor Emotional Health Jessica Nonato
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Cultivating Connection and Developing Emotional Health Anise Ralston and Hadara Vaughn
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Robotics Club Kayleigh Luna
p/11 FFA Update Mackenzy Tucker
OVERVIEW This month's issue centers around emotional health. Throughout the issue there will be articles detailing the difference between emotional and mental health, a guide allowing you to identify poor emotional health in others, and steps to rebuilding and promoting positive emotional health in yourself and others, all the while building helpful connections. Emotional health encompasses our ability to cope with major life events and how we acknowledge our own emotions as well as those of others. By improving our emotional health we can improve our quality of life and our relationships with those around us.
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MISSION STATEMENT AND STAFF Note from Illustrators: The mission of AHS Media is to entertain, inform, inspire, and support our community through telling our many stories. We value the stories others want to share. As illustrators for the magazine, we take pride in illustrating work representing the community and Left to right: Kai Grist and Alana Risbrudt
Note from the Editors and Designers: The Greyscale Report aims to inform our community through thoughtful, truthful, and extensive interviews of the student body and staff. We endeavor to report both tough yet necessary topics as well as lighthearted school news. As a reliable and relatable source of information, we strive to be accountable, honorable, and safe. We hope you enjoy reading the new issue as much as we enjoyed designing, editing, and researching it for you!
its issues.
Top row left to right: Kayleigh Luna, Anise Ralston, and Trisanee Siharath Bottom row left to right: Jessica Nonato and Hadara Vaughn
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Introduction to Emotional Health What is emotional health? Emotional health is one aspect of mental health. Our emotional health is the ability to cope with positive and negative emotions along with our awareness of them. People with good emotional health tend to have healthy coping mechanisms when dealing with their negative emotions. The difference between emotional health and mental illness is that mental illnesses stems from deeper problems such as chemical imbalances and trauma. Emotional health is all about emotional regulation, awareness, and coping skills. These can all be applied to people with or without mental illness. Four characteristics that contribute to healthy emotional health include: • Emotional stability - The capacity to maintain ones emotional balance under stressful circumstances • Resilience - The ability to respond to stressful or unexpected situations and crises. This is determined based on different things such as age, identity, and personal experience • Optimism - Ability to remain positive despite any setbacks or obstacles in life • Self-esteem - How you feel about yourself and the ability to value your personal achievements
Differences between Emotional and Mental Health Emotional Health • • • •
Deals with 'matters of the heart' Ability to cope and regulate emotions Foster positive relationships Something that can be practiced and improved
Mental Health • • • •
Deals with 'matters of the head' Ability to think clearly Result of trauma or chemical imbalances Can be treated with medication or therapy
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How to Spot Poor Emotional Health Emotional
dysregulation
is
a problem that stems from brain-related symptoms that affect how people manage and regulate their feelings along with their emotions.
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These conditions play a huge role in the
However,
development of our brains and how they
with these signs for more than two
work today. Not being able to control your
weeks,
feelings and emotions is usually not serious
When does it become a problem? It
except for severe cases. Many of these
can become a serious problem when it
instances can be treated. Poor emotional
disrupts your life, social relationships,
health may start out as a subtle change to
career, and other aspects of your life.
a person's feelings, thinking and behavior.
Balancing all of life’s demands, for example
If these individuals have ongoing changes,
school, work, relationships, and finances,
it could be a sign that they are developing
can be stressful for anyone. Anyone can
bad emotional health. If something does
develop poor mental health problems.
not feel right, it is very important to have
Remember that on top of our everyday
a conversation about finding help. It is
challenges, it could affect any of us. You
important to notice how often these signs
are a unique individual to notice warning
occur. For example, some signs may not be
signs that someone you care about could
caused by a serious problem, rather it could
be feeling more overwhelmed by stress,
end up being a normal part of life.
anxiety or sadness that is not manageable.
it’s
if
you
best
to
notice seek
someone help
then.
What are the symptoms of poor
Another important indicator you
mental health? If you notice
should notice in someone else,
that a friend or a loved one does
are significant changes in what an
not seem to see themselves,
individual says. For example, some
you should begin spotting the
of the most common changes in
difference between a bad mood
speech you should look out for
and something more serious.
include:
Some indicators include: • looking worried/anxious
• "what's the point?"
• looks unhappy or depressed
• "I'm messing up everything in
• experiences emotional outbursts
my life"
• experiences sleeping problems
• "I wish I could just not wake up"
• weight and appetite changes
• "I've let people down"
• substance abuse
• "I don't feel well"
• changes in behavior and feelings
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Cultivating Connection and Developing Emotional Health. Developing strong emotional health is essential in allowing us to deal with stressors, both external and internal. The ability to regulate our emotions is critically important, especially when we are confronted by stress and trauma. Without careful control, these emotions can spiral into physical ailments such as headaches and stomach aches. Emotional regulation can also help us manage conflict within relationships, enhance performance at work, and increase our overall happiness. Below are 5 essential methods to the development of strong emotional health: Building Resilience. Emotional resilience correlates strongly with fewer negative emotions and the ability to recover from setbacks quickly. By developing emotional resilience we can learn healthy ways to cope with difficult emotions and evolve to deal with issues efficiently. Emotional resilience can be built through a number of simple strategies: by developing healthy eating, practicing frequent physical activity, and a regular sleep schedule. Practicing activities we enjoy, or assessing the way which we address issues can also allow the development of a positive outlook. Nurturing a positive outlook allows us to learn from our mistakes and challenge preexisting or toxic ideas. Similarly, developing principles, or ideals to live by, allows for the experience of life guided by the principles important to you. Finally, emotional resilience is impacted by the people we surround ourselves with. By practicing healthy relationships and cultivating positive, healthy connections we boost our own emotional health. Reducing Stress. For most high schoolers, stress is a constant, especially considering
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an overwhelming amount of schoolwork, frequent procrastination, and a multitude of personal issues. But, when stress lasts for extended periods of time (a condition known as chronic stress) it can become extremely harmful. Learning healthy ways to cope with stress is an essential element of mastering your emotional health. Managing stress, as we are often told, is extremely reliant on the amount of sleep our bodies get. High-schoolers on average should sleep for 8 or more hours each night, and yet a majority sleep less than 6 hours. Sleep often becomes a second priority, which then increases stress levels and develops a vicious cycle of reduced sleep and heightened stress. However, for those of us with less-than stable sleep schedules, physical exercise and mindfulness exercises can be just as important. Physical exercise is proven to boost our mood and reduce stress significantly, and emotion-centered exercises, such as yoga or regulated breathing, allow for vital self-reflection. When discussing self-reflectionit is also important to consider personal priorities. Identifying our goals and how we can reasonably achieve them allows us to filter out an excess workload, thereby reducing stress. However, if these measures prove to be ineffective, reaching out to close friends, family, or health professionals is a sure way to address stress effectively.
By practicing healthy relationships and cultivating positive, healthy connections we boost our own emotional health.
Sharing our feelings or problems with others can often offset their emotional burden significantly. Strong Social Connections. Social connections are scientifically proven to have an immense impact on both emotions and physical health. Strong relationships– whether romantic, platonic, or familial, can help develop a healthy and strong emotional network. Creating social connections in high school can be challenging, but communicating with others can often improve emotional health. By involving yourself somehow within your school community you can reach out to people with similar interests and build strong relationships. Through clubs, classes, athletics, and even simple social interactions we can grow to interact with the community that surrounds us. Experiencing new events or joining like-minded people in the pursuit of a shared interest allows for positive social connections, and the formation of a reliable support network. Coping with Loss. A sudden loss is often hard to recover from, whether it be the death of a loved one, the loss of a friend, or a sudden life change. Relying upon a support network is essential to overcoming strong, negative feelings. By opening up to family and friends we can overcome the grieving process in a healthy
Becoming a more mindful person does require commitment and practice, but ultimately benefits our emotional health.
manner while still recognizing loss. Finding a healthy way to cope with loss is hard. Often we resort to harmful coping mechanisms, such as drugs and alcohol, and our emotional and mental health declines severely. The temptation of these “easier” coping mechanisms is hard to resist, and avoiding toxic coping mechanisms is difficult. By reaching out to others who have experienced loss, or to close relatives and friends, we can develop healthy coping mechanisms. While community connection is important to recovery, oftentimes an objective lens helps far more. Reaching out to grief support groups, doctors, and even short-term talk therapists can help immensely. The grieving process takes time– and yet is different for everyone. Asking for help or support is not shameful, and does not indicate weakness– rather it illustrates the strength to recognize your own needs. By reaching out, you can avoid making rash or regretful decisions, and process grief in a healthy fashion. Developing Mindfulness. It is easy to dismiss the concept of mindfulness, however, understanding our surroundings and adapting to meet them can build maturity. Becoming a more mindful person does require commitment and practice, but ultimately benefits our emotional health. Practicing mindfulness looks different for everyone. Some may participate in yoga and breathing exercises, while others may choose to simply live in the moment or practice social awareness. Finding a method that works for you is essential– remember we each have unique needs and mindsets. For example, breath-related exercises generally focus on the acknowledgment of each breath, counting and controlling inhalation and exhalation. During stressful moments, focusing on the pattern of our breathing can be vital to recentering our emotions. However, mindfulness can be as simple as awareness of our bodies; acknowledging urges to eat and sleep, as well as understanding the movement of our body throughout the day. Remember that we all have different needs, and by researching mindfulness methods you can find what best suits you!
Greybots: Emiko Lundberg Emiko Lundberg is a Sophomore at Atascadero High School. While only in her second year here at the highschool she is in her 3rd year on the robotics team here and she loves it.
She is on the design team for the Greybots. Her job is to create a 3d model for their robot through CAD (Computer Aided Design). It’s clear Emiko has a lot of passion for robotics and that comes from her brother being a part of the robotics team when he was in high school. She wanted to follow in his footsteps and ended up enjoying engineering and designing.
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She shared with us that the robotics team travels a lot. They travel for every competition we attend, during season and offseason. Emiko loves meeting people from all over the world when her team goes to competitions. With all the traveling and work it is no surprise that robotics takes up a majority of Emiko’s freetime during the season, but all the hard work everyone puts into the team pays
Even though robotics is a fun experience
off for her when
and a great time, it is important to
they get to a
remember that it is a work environment,
competition.
where they must be mature and helpful to each other to get work done on time. With all the hard work that comes with robotics it is no surprise that robotics takes up a majority of her freetime during the season, but according to her all the hard work everyone puts into the team pays off when they get to a competition. It shows how much it pays off when you see their amazing robot that won many competitions last year.
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