by Winter Chiu
When anxiety reigns, Winter shares how to breathe, accept, and carry on.
“Breathe.”
You’re sitting in the midst of your classroom with your report card in hand, watery eyes staring at the flimsy piece of paper inked with red blobs, which just so happens to be the devil that ruined your fate. Soft laughter turns unbearably loud, innocent whispers seemingly directed at you, and even the background music from the looping video blends into something utterly terrifying you couldn’t call music. The distant honk of car horns and the close clatter of footsteps are amplified, and an unsettling feeling begins to creep in. Your heart races, your chest tightens, and a heavy weight is pressing down on you. You keep trying, hoping, and failing to seek a moment of calm, but your attempts appear futile. The urge to cry wells up, and for a fleeting moment, your tears threaten to spill over.
“Breathe.”
But the thought of breaking down in front of so-called friends feels so…unbearable. Instead, you tell yourself that no one would understand it, the storm brewing within you. After all, people are too busy with their lives—who would have the time to even notice measly little you and your silent battle? No one, of course. You forcefully plaster the same fake smile on your face, the one you use to mask the turmoil beneath, mentally counting the drawn-out seconds until you can escape while your tears fight to break through.
“Breathe. Please.”
As she tightens her grip, you feel increasingly isolated, even in this room full of your equals. The world seems to spin faster, your heart beats quicker, leaving you behind, and the pressure to keep up feels suffocating. The desire to flee grows stronger, and the little voice in your head tells you to let her win the battle. Yet you stand your ground, fighting against the urge to retreat into yourself, refusing to let her take over, but that’s not what happens in stories, is it?
“Breathe” The barrier shatters.
Anxiety reigns. However… All villains are misunderstood, right?
“Will you listen to me now? Breathe.”
You finally hear her, loud and clear, and take a long, deep breath. You remind yourself that it’s okay to feel this way, that you’re not alone in your struggle, even if it feels like it at the moment.
“Breathe again, slowly this time.”
You take another deep breath, trying to ground yourself in the present. You focus on the little things: the warmth of the sun peeking into the classroom, the vibrant colours of the flowers on the tree outside, and the laughter of everyone around you. Each tiny detail becomes a lifeline, anchoring you back here. You remind yourself that you can and you will navigate through this, and that the chaos around you doesn’t have to dictate your feelings. Each breath you take acts as a reminder that you are stronger than her, even when it feels all-consuming. Slowly, you begin to regain control, and with every small but meaningful breath, you feel her leaving you, guiding you back to where you are now.
She is Anxiety, or more precisely, mild anxiety.
Anxiety levels are classified by the levels of distress and impairment experienced into four main categories: mild anxiety, moderate anxiety, severe anxiety, and panic-level anxiety. That was anxiety at its mildest, the stage where one can still keep her under control.
As a student, I believe we struggle with anxiety in all aspects of life. Alongside family expectations, social lives, and competitions, school life stands out from the crowd. In a recent report conducted in 2024 by Transforming Education, 60% of students report feeling stressed every day, and 75% of high school students feel constant stress over homework. This stress may be from the dread of completing an assignment, feelings of frustration, or simply the overwhelming amount of work that lies ahead, all of which can lead to anxiety taking over.
Sometimes, I struggle with looming deadlines and feel anxious about how closely they are spaced, yet the solution is straightforward: I simply need to create a schedule and manage my time more effectively. When you don’t know what to do, take a deep breath, and let your mind have a moment of peace and quieteness before continuing. I hope you’ll find it soothing.
Ever heard of the Yerkes-Dodson Law? It’s a psychological concept developed by Robert M. Yerkes and John Dillingham Dodson back in 1908. The Yerkes-Dodson curve shows that being alert, stressed or anxious helps you to perform better. This concept highlights that the right amount of anxiety can improve your performance. It can help prepare you to deal with threats and challenges, perform your best, and motivate you to keep working toward your goals. This kind of anxiety sharpens your focus, enhances your cognitive abilities, and drives you to excel. It acts as a catalyst for action rather than a barrier; as your ally rather than your enemy.
But just like everything else, too much of a good thing is a bad thing. The Yerkes-Dodson law also states that being too overwhelmed or anxious interferes with your performance. When anxiety becomes the antagonist, it hinders your ability. This is where the challenge lies—finding a balance between the thin line of the good and the bad. The key? Every lock is different, and the key to my lock is to think positively and look on the bright side.
Everyone is bound to experience anxiety at some point in their lives, and when we do, we have to understand that the right amount can be good for us, just like having too much vitamins can lead to an upset stomach. Often viewed negatively, anxiety actually acts as a warning system, alerting us to potential threats and triggering the body’s fight-or-flight response.
In Inside Out 2, Joy says “It’s alright to feel anxious,” which reminds us that emotions are integral to the human experience, and we can only effectively manage and even harness it to our advantage when we fully acknowledge and accept anxiety being a normal part of us. As Jon Kabat-Zinn once said, “You can’t stop the waves, but you can learn to surf.” ■
Winter Chiu is an outgoing and adventurous 14-year-old who is interested in reading and writing. Currently studying at N.T. Heung Yee Kuk Yuen Long District Secondary School, she is a member of Youth Hong Kong’s young writers team. Find her at Instagram @winterc_ty