2018 MNSHAPE Conference

According to the American Psychological Association, teens are under pressure and reporting comparable stress levels and symptoms of stress as adults. A recent survey of American teens found that small, daily stressors are just as impactful over time as major stressful life events. This can lead to poor sleep habits, increased anger and lower academic performance, putting teens at a higher risk of experiencing symptoms of depression and anxiety, along with a host of other psychological and physical issues.

According to the 2016 MN student survey results:
- One in five students indicated experiencing symptoms of depression,
- 9th grade students who reported mental health concerns lasting six months or more increased from 12.5% in 2013 to 17.3% in 2016; and
- The percentage of 11th graders who said they seriously considered suicide in the past year increased from 9.7% in 2013 to 12.0% in 2016.

In order to help teens stress less and provide a highly requested community resource, Allina Health created Change to Chill™ (CTC). CTC is a free, online resource that provides stress reduction skills, life balance techniques, mindfulness, resiliency, gratitude practice, deep breathing strategies and health education for teens. CTC has the flexibility to be adapted to individual or group needs and is customized for both teen and adult users.

CTC serves the greater community through work with teachers who use it in their classrooms, counselors who integrate it into their work with youth, teens who use it individually, in school and as part of social groups, and parents who are looking for ways to help their children stress less. CTC provides an easy way for teens to talk about stress and identify ways to manage it so they can thrive.

This session will highlight how stress affects all of us, and most importantly, it will provide you with ready-to-use, relevant resources to help you empower teens to build resiliency and find balance while building your own capacity for self-care. You’ll leave inspired and equipped to manage whatever comes your way and help the youth you work with stress less.

Presentation outline:
1. Welcome and introduction
2. Physiology behind stress
a. Effects on the human body
b. Effects on the learning environment
3. Change to Chill (Changetochill.org)
a. What it is, what it isn’t
b. Live demo of the website including teen and educator components, DIY activities, screen stress connection content, tools and additional resources
4. Experiential learning activity
5. Options for use in the school, home and community settings – next steps
6. Q&A
7. Call to action & video clip