Be it homework completion or any work execution in life, you cannot achieve anything if you continue to be afraid of what you fear the most. Fear is a very interesting thing. The more you try to run away from it, the more it comes after you. The day when you stand face to face in front of it, it disappears.
Similarly, homework is a word which every child tries to run away from. And if you are one of those students whose heartbeat gets faster than a galloping horse, you, my friend are suffering from homework fever.Homework fever or commonly known as anxiety disorder occurs by the mere thought of sitting with homework.
According to a study report from the University of Wisconsin, psychiatrists state that this type of anxiety among students is accompanied by stress. It freezes their minds; hence they palpitate and try various methods to avoid it.
As homework is unavoidable, instead of fighting with it, let us use some strategies to deal with it to manage the anxiety level. Read on to know about it.
8 Strategies to deal with Homework fever or Anxiety
- Try to figure out any underlying reason for such anxiety
If you get frequent panic attacks just by seeing your homework copy, you need to sit and think why it is so. Panicking due to vast homework content once in a blue moon can be acknowledged, but similar pattern repetition every day can be an indication of a greater problem.
It is advisable to consult with a doctor to check if you are suffering from any learning disabilities or ADHD (Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) or not. You can only get anxious when you are not able to understand the task or are facing difficulty in keeping up with your classmates.
Also, if you are getting bullied at your school or college, talk to your teacher or anybody of higher authority to get rid of the problem. Finding and acknowledging the problem will help you to take quick treatment to solve the issue.
- Create a cosy atmosphere
Before starting with your homework, find a place in your home which you find relaxing and peaceful. Your mind becomes anxious when you see a cluttered room or a table strewn with books. If you find your patio or your living room comfortable, try starting your homework there to see any change.
Prior to starting with your given task in your relaxing space, remove any kind of distractions like cell phones, Nintendo or any radio. A distraction free, quite atmosphere can work wonders to reduce your anxiety level. Apart from reducing your homework fever, it will help you to complete your homework much faster and more effectively.
- Complete your task at your favourable time
There is no hard and fast rule that you have to complete your homework on a designated time. If you consider carefully, a majority of the panic attacks occur with the thought of the impending time of homework. It begins with jitteriness and then dawns the feeling of ‘fight or flight’.
To tone down the feeling of anxiety, you can select your own time for homework completion. It can be anytime of your choice. You can sit with it in the early morning when your mind is fresh, or you can execute it after you come back home from your institution. What matters most is the comfortable time when you are relaxed and feel ready to go for your task.
- Ditch your usual homework time and utilise it for other work
After reading the previous strategy, you might have made your mind to utilise another time, to begin with your homework. If you have done so, then use that previously designated time to get other works completed. You can use that time to run different errands like shopping for grocery, paying bills, reading your favourite book, exercising or even try cooking.
With the help of this method, you will feel your homework to be like a daily routine and not a chore to be performed forcefully. This time management will help you calm your nerves and will also set a good example for others who suffer from the same homework fever.
- Talk…talk…talk
Effective communication is a must if you want to decrease the level of anxiety. It is a general expectation of every parent to see their children fare well in their educational sector. Even if their expectations are unrealistic, its level increases with the passing time.
You have to understand and make them see thepoint that you cannot fulfil every wish of theirs.Reach out to them and relate your fears and inconveniences while studying or completing your homework.
- Take guidance from parents
Homework is like a huge unending nightmare if you do not have support. Taking the guidance of teachers in your institution is no doubt a good idea, but supervision from a supportive parent helps a lot to overcome the fear.
Ask one of your parents’ to sit with you when you sit to execute your homework. When you sit with them, they can monitor your study techniques and even rectify mistakes if you make one. The presence of a guardian can diminish the apprehension level to a certain extent.
- Opt for stress relieving activities
If you feel the onset of a panic attack, you can divert your mind to some other activity to reduce it. Opting for yoga or medication can relieve you of the unease. You can also engage in daily cardiovascular exercise routine in between your homework execution.
Stretching and rhythmic breathing can also help you to calm your frazzled nerves. Listening to serene music is also counted as one of the most effective stress buster methods.
- Include revision as your study habit
Nervousness is generated when you don’t know what the basics of the topic given as homework are. In order to be free of the homework fever, you need to inculcate the habit of regular revision of your subjects. When you regularly revise your topics, you are confident of the answers. This confidence will keep your anxiousness regarding the homework at bay.
These are some of the strategies which when applied by you can reduce your homework fever. If you wish to know about more strategies, you can get help from professional academic websites where different stress buster ways are provided for your assistance.
Remember, fear and anxiety are just the state of your mind and not your personality. If you build apositive attitude towards your homework and have confidence in yourself, homework fever will be afraid of you and the other way round.