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How to
Manage Stress
How to manage stress
Even if you manage to identify your sources of stress and your triggers, stress will always come back. That’s normal. The real question is: what do you do when it shows up? Managing your stress in a healthy way means choosing how to respond to what you feel, in a way that helps you regain your peace instead of making the situation worse or hurting yourself even more.
ADAPTATION STRATEGIES
When we’re stressed, we always do something to try to “make the feeling go away.” This is what we call coping strategies. But not all strategies are equally helpful:
Click on + to read and on X to close the window.
Unhealthy strategies
Healthy strategies
CONCRETE EXAMPLES
A girl is insulted on social media.
Unhealthy reaction: replying with insults, starting to hate the person, or withdrawing into herself.
Healthy reaction: blocking the aggressor, talking to a trusted adult, praying to recover her inner peace.
CONCRETE EXAMPLES
Another girl receives a lot of family pressure to “bring in money.”
Healthy reaction: looking for a small honest job, talking to a trusted person about the pressure, reminding her family that she is still in school and that her first responsibility is to learn.
Unhealthy reaction: agreeing to sexual activities in exchange for money.
IMPORTANT TO NOTE
Unhealthy strategies are like an anaesthetic: they hide the pain, but they don’t heal it. Healthy strategies don’t make stress disappear instantly, but they address the root of the problem and help you move forward.
Three attitudes to better manage your stress
Adopting the mental attitudes below will help you manage your stress more effectively.
Click on + to read and on X to close the window.
Re-evaluate your situation
Take responsibility for what you can control
Think long-term
The Anti-Stress Foundations (Your Energy Tank)
Managing stress also means making sure you have the basic resources you need to cope. You can’t handle a storm well if you haven’t slept or eaten.
+ info
+ info
+ info
How to relieve stress
Stress is part of life
But you have simple and accessible ways to respond to it in a healthy way. Whether it’s writing what you feel in your journal, taking deep breaths, relaxing your body through a walk, doing simple physical exercises, or practising a sport — each of these practices can help you regain calm and inner strength.
Quick Tool
The Power of the Vagus Nerve
When your stress rises, you can slow it down physiologically through breathing. When you breathe slowly and deeply, you send a calming signal through the vagus nerve directly to your brain. This signal forces your body to switch off the stress response (adrenaline) and move into rest mode. That’s why you wouldn't panic if you are breathing in a controlled way.
Technique : Try breathing slowly through your nose, letting your belly rise, and exhaling even more slowly than you inhaled.
Why does breathing calm you down so quickly?
When you’re stressed, your sympathetic nervous system (the accelerator) takes over and releases adrenaline. It makes your heart beat fast and your breathing short and quick. But when you take a slow, deep breath — especially a long exhale — you activate the vagus nerve (the longest nerve in your body). This nerve is the direct line to your parasympathetic nervous system (the brake). When it receives the signal from your calm breathing, the vagus nerve sends a message to your brain: “The danger is over!” This forces your body to slow down:
- your heart rate decreases
- adrenaline release drops
- and you switch from “fight or flight” to “rest and digest.”
That’s why it is physiologically difficult to stay in a panic state if you breathe slowly and deeply.
IN SUMMARY
- Choose to identify what triggers your stress (and to avoid what is toxic).
- Choose to transform your thoughts (shifting from self-judgment to clarity).
- Choose to invest in your foundations (sleep, boundaries) to build your resilience.
Stress is part of life, but through this lesson you’ve discovered something essential: you don’t have to suffer it. Managing your stress isn’t about magic — it’s about making conscious choices:
Never forget: healthy strategies take effort, but they are the only ones that give you real, lasting peace and help you grow. Every time you breathe deeply, set a boundary, or reframe a negative thought, you’re doing more than calming your stress — you’re taking back control of your inner life.
Activities to check understanding
Activities to check understanding
Activities to check understanding
Activities to check understanding
Activities to check understanding
Activities to check understanding
Activities to check understanding
Activities to check understanding
Complète les espaces avec les bonnes réponses en glissant le mot dans sa case.
Continue
Bravo !
Tu as fini cette section.
Début
Think long-term
A quick fix that destroys you afterwards is not a real solution. Example: running away from your problems by sleeping all day, eating to escape, using alcohol or drugs, or giving in to pressure only gives you temporary relief. Think about what you truly want for your future, and choose strategies that lead you in that direction.
Take responsibility for what you can control
Example: instead of thinking “I’m destined to fail,” tell yourself “I can learn from my mistakes, improve, and try new strategies.” You can’t control everything, of course, but you can choose how you respond.
Re-evaluate your situation
Sometimes what stresses us isn’t the situation itself, but the way we look at it. Ask yourself: Am I exaggerating things? Am I giving myself impossible standards? Am I only focusing on the negative side?
Unhealthy strategies
For example: staying silent or keeping everything inside, exploding at others, turning to food, social media, lying, escaping reality, violence, alcohol or drugs, or sexual behaviours. These strategies bring quick relief, but they make the problems worse in the long run.
Hydration and nutrition: Healthy eating and drinking enough water help your body manage the release of stress hormones like cortisol. Avoid too much sugar or caffeine — they give you a quick boost, but increase anxiety afterwards.
Organisation and boundaries: “Last-minute stress” is a type of stress you can control. Learn to:
- Plan small steps for big projects (this helps you avoid procrastination).
- Say no to requests that overwhelm you or go beyond your limits.
Healthy strategies
For example: praying, taking deep breaths, writing down what you feel, walking or exercising, drawing, talking to someone you trust, asking for help, or finding practical solutions. These strategies take more effort, but they bring peace and positive results in the long run.
Sleep: Lack of sleep is a form of chronic stress in itself. Your body and your brain need rest to regenerate and return to homeostasis (your body’s internal balance and calm).
How to Manage Stress
Muriel Akahi
Created on December 8, 2025
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Transcript
Use the arrows to navigate
How to
Manage Stress
How to manage stress
Even if you manage to identify your sources of stress and your triggers, stress will always come back. That’s normal. The real question is: what do you do when it shows up? Managing your stress in a healthy way means choosing how to respond to what you feel, in a way that helps you regain your peace instead of making the situation worse or hurting yourself even more.
ADAPTATION STRATEGIES
When we’re stressed, we always do something to try to “make the feeling go away.” This is what we call coping strategies. But not all strategies are equally helpful:
Click on + to read and on X to close the window.
Unhealthy strategies
Healthy strategies
CONCRETE EXAMPLES
A girl is insulted on social media.
Unhealthy reaction: replying with insults, starting to hate the person, or withdrawing into herself.
Healthy reaction: blocking the aggressor, talking to a trusted adult, praying to recover her inner peace.
CONCRETE EXAMPLES
Another girl receives a lot of family pressure to “bring in money.”
Healthy reaction: looking for a small honest job, talking to a trusted person about the pressure, reminding her family that she is still in school and that her first responsibility is to learn.
Unhealthy reaction: agreeing to sexual activities in exchange for money.
IMPORTANT TO NOTE
Unhealthy strategies are like an anaesthetic: they hide the pain, but they don’t heal it. Healthy strategies don’t make stress disappear instantly, but they address the root of the problem and help you move forward.
Three attitudes to better manage your stress
Adopting the mental attitudes below will help you manage your stress more effectively.
Click on + to read and on X to close the window.
Re-evaluate your situation
Take responsibility for what you can control
Think long-term
The Anti-Stress Foundations (Your Energy Tank)
Managing stress also means making sure you have the basic resources you need to cope. You can’t handle a storm well if you haven’t slept or eaten.
+ info
+ info
+ info
How to relieve stress
Stress is part of life
But you have simple and accessible ways to respond to it in a healthy way. Whether it’s writing what you feel in your journal, taking deep breaths, relaxing your body through a walk, doing simple physical exercises, or practising a sport — each of these practices can help you regain calm and inner strength.
Quick Tool
The Power of the Vagus Nerve
When your stress rises, you can slow it down physiologically through breathing. When you breathe slowly and deeply, you send a calming signal through the vagus nerve directly to your brain. This signal forces your body to switch off the stress response (adrenaline) and move into rest mode. That’s why you wouldn't panic if you are breathing in a controlled way.
Technique : Try breathing slowly through your nose, letting your belly rise, and exhaling even more slowly than you inhaled.
Why does breathing calm you down so quickly?
When you’re stressed, your sympathetic nervous system (the accelerator) takes over and releases adrenaline. It makes your heart beat fast and your breathing short and quick. But when you take a slow, deep breath — especially a long exhale — you activate the vagus nerve (the longest nerve in your body). This nerve is the direct line to your parasympathetic nervous system (the brake). When it receives the signal from your calm breathing, the vagus nerve sends a message to your brain: “The danger is over!” This forces your body to slow down:
- your heart rate decreases
- adrenaline release drops
- and you switch from “fight or flight” to “rest and digest.”
That’s why it is physiologically difficult to stay in a panic state if you breathe slowly and deeply.IN SUMMARY
Stress is part of life, but through this lesson you’ve discovered something essential: you don’t have to suffer it. Managing your stress isn’t about magic — it’s about making conscious choices:
Never forget: healthy strategies take effort, but they are the only ones that give you real, lasting peace and help you grow. Every time you breathe deeply, set a boundary, or reframe a negative thought, you’re doing more than calming your stress — you’re taking back control of your inner life.
Activities to check understanding
Activities to check understanding
Activities to check understanding
Activities to check understanding
Activities to check understanding
Activities to check understanding
Activities to check understanding
Activities to check understanding
Complète les espaces avec les bonnes réponses en glissant le mot dans sa case.
Continue
Bravo !
Tu as fini cette section.
Début
Think long-term
A quick fix that destroys you afterwards is not a real solution. Example: running away from your problems by sleeping all day, eating to escape, using alcohol or drugs, or giving in to pressure only gives you temporary relief. Think about what you truly want for your future, and choose strategies that lead you in that direction.
Take responsibility for what you can control
Example: instead of thinking “I’m destined to fail,” tell yourself “I can learn from my mistakes, improve, and try new strategies.” You can’t control everything, of course, but you can choose how you respond.
Re-evaluate your situation
Sometimes what stresses us isn’t the situation itself, but the way we look at it. Ask yourself: Am I exaggerating things? Am I giving myself impossible standards? Am I only focusing on the negative side?
Unhealthy strategies
For example: staying silent or keeping everything inside, exploding at others, turning to food, social media, lying, escaping reality, violence, alcohol or drugs, or sexual behaviours. These strategies bring quick relief, but they make the problems worse in the long run.
Hydration and nutrition: Healthy eating and drinking enough water help your body manage the release of stress hormones like cortisol. Avoid too much sugar or caffeine — they give you a quick boost, but increase anxiety afterwards.
Organisation and boundaries: “Last-minute stress” is a type of stress you can control. Learn to:
Healthy strategies
For example: praying, taking deep breaths, writing down what you feel, walking or exercising, drawing, talking to someone you trust, asking for help, or finding practical solutions. These strategies take more effort, but they bring peace and positive results in the long run.
Sleep: Lack of sleep is a form of chronic stress in itself. Your body and your brain need rest to regenerate and return to homeostasis (your body’s internal balance and calm).