#mental state to do so. because the whole academic perfection and self harm is a Thing i would like to engage with Properly without spirals

[slytherinknowitall]

To Bed A Death Eater

Chapter 2: Doubt

(Click here for chapter 1!)

Disclaimer: I don’t own the “Harry Potter” book series. The story of “Harry Potter” is the property of J. K. Rowling, it is not my intellectual property. There is no financial gain made from this nor will any be sought. This is for entertainment purposes only.

Less than ten minutes later, there was a timid knock at her door, and Hermione would have been lying if she had said that that sound did not make her heart skip a beat.

Putting aside the book she’d been absentmindedly flicking through, she walked to the door with a rather stiff and unsteady gait before pulling it open to reveal the familiar figure of the Potions Master.

“Professor Snape,” she whispered breathlessly, trying hard to ignore the sudden lump in her throat. “Um, please, come in.”

Stepping aside, she watched as the man hesitantly took one cautious step into the crammed room; and the unusual sight of his visible wariness made her mentally smack her own forehead.

Of course. He can’t see!

“Here, let me help you,” she offered, reaching out her hand without a moment’s thought. When she touched his forearm, he drew a sharp intake of breath. “Oh, I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to startle you, sir.”

Snape did not say anything in response. For an agonizingly long time, they just stood like that in the doorway of her bedroom, her hand on his arm, the awkwardness in the air virtually palpable. It was only when there was suddenly the sound of commotion coming from downstairs that Hermione summoned up the nerve to pull him inside, locking the door behind them. Getting out her wand, she applied a silencing charm as well as some protective wards for good measure.

Better safe than sorry. It certainly wouldn’t do any good to have someone just barge in.

Turning back around to face him, she tentatively grabbed his elbow and guided him towards her bed. She could not help but silently cringe as she saw him there, seated on her tiny twin-size bed, thinking about what might be happening soon in that very spot. But alas, her small bedroom, which she had moved into a mere two months earlier, did not offer any other sitting accommodations. And so, though her heart was trembling so very terribly, she went and sat next to him.

For a while, neither one of them spoke. Kneading her fingers, the young woman struggled to ignore how uncomfortably close she presently was to her former teacher as she stared out the window overlooking the deserted street outside. Looking back, she could not have said with certainty whether it had only been a few minutes or several hours, but by the time the streetlights came on, she finally plucked up the courage to say, “I’m glad that you decided to come here so that we can talk in private.”

“I did not have much of a choice,” Snape admitted huskily. “Alastor practically pushed me upstairs while Albus tried to contain everyone else in the kitchen.”

“They’re still not very thrilled about this, aren’t they?”

He gave an affirmative grunt. “Most of them were ready to jump at my throat and kill me with their bare hands right there and then.”

“Oh …” Hermione had to swallow hard. “I’m sorry. They really ought not to treat you like that.”

“I don’t blame them. I truly have half a mind to turn my own wand on myself.”

A troubled frown creased Hermione’s forehead. There was an obvious hint of blatant self-hatred dripping from his words, and she did not like that. She did not like that one bit.

But before she even had the chance to respond, he continued, “I will be honest with you … I do not even know what to say to you right now.”

Vaguely tracing the diamond pattern of the quilt they were sitting on with one finger, she tried her best to sound nonchalant as she mumbled, “Well, why don’t you simply tell me whether or not you accept my offer.”

“Miss Granger, I –”

“Would you mind if we used first names?” she interrupted him. “Just for today. It’s just that formalities would make this whole thing even weirder than it already is.”

She saw him hesitate for a second.

“All right … Hermione,” he ultimately conceded, and it was so weird to hear him properly address her by her given name for the very first time – though she had to admit that it sounded quite nice coming from his lips. Something about that deep voice of his made her stomach clench up into knots. “As much as I appreciate it, I obviously cannot accept your proposal.”

“Why not?”

“Even forgetting the fact that you were my student for seven years and that I am a lot older than you, I could never in good faith make you endure such a thing. This, this curse,” he spat out the word with disgust. “Is a lot more powerful than you could ever even imagine. It would strip me of all control and force me to do unspeakable things to you that could very well destroy your sanity.”

He turned away from her in an unsuccessful attempt to hide his facial expression which was filled with nothing but self-loathing. “Even now, I can feel the dark magic coursing through my veins, tugging at my mind. It senses your presence. I can hear it whisper to me, bidding me to just rip off this stupid blindfold and take you right here. Merely sitting next to you already requires more will power than any time I have had to shield my mind from the Dark Lord.”

The witch’s breathing hitched in her throat. His crude confession made her heart beat so fast that it was almost threatening to break out of her ribcage. Willing herself to take a deep breath, she squeezed her eyes shut and forced herself to stay put.

No. No, you can do this. For the Order. For Harry.

“I don’t believe that Professor Dumbledore would have sent you up here if he thought that there was a chance of me being seriously harmed,” she said softly, her eyes still closed. “And I also don’t believe that any kind of dark magic would ever be able to entirely overpower your morals and your good heart.”

He snorted with biting laughter. “Then you clearly do not know me well at all. Or him, for that matter. All that old madman cares about is the cause. We are all nothing but mere chess pieces in that little, rigged game of his he likes to play.”

“Don’t say that –”

“But it’s the truth! Don’t you see?” His tone gradually got louder and louder. “Any reasonably sane man in his position would have simply hired an unsuspecting prostitute, slipped her a couple of potions and then sent her back home with an altered memory and a nice, big bag filled to the brim with Galleons, blissfully unaware of any specifics. But not Albus. No, in his mind, raping the Muggle-born third of the Golden Trio is the perfect way to feign loyalty to the enemy and thus securing his plaything’s rank among the Dark Lord’s inner circle. Ha! As distraught as he might have acted, he knew from the beginning that you’d be the one to volunteer. Only you’d be foolish enough to let the greasy git of the dungeons fuck you in an attempt to save his pathetic, miserable life. You and your stupid saviour complex. So please, don’t be so naïve. This is all just a fucking charade to that bloody bedlamite!”

What followed that angry outburst was silence – complete and utter silence. Not even the rustling of the trees outside or the rapid palpitations inside both of their chests seemed to be able to penetrate their noiseless bubble. Hermione could feel her own pulse thumbing in her ears, and her mouth felt almost disgustingly dry. Wordlessly counting to a hundred, she at last opened her eyes and dared to cast a glance at the wizard. He was sitting in a hunched-over position, his face buried in his hands. Never before had she seen him like that, so evidently helpless, so vulnerable. For some reason, it nearly made her feel physically sick to witness him in such a state.

“I understand your apprehension, I really do,” she muttered gently. “I’m not quite keen on having to do this either. But I honestly don’t see any other way out of this mess. Somehow or the other, the curse must be broken … and time is running out.”

“I know,” he croaked out, the words muffled by his hands.

“And for all his faults, Professor Dumbledore is right. We cannot put ourselves before the cause. Especially not during dark times like these.” She could not stop her face from twisting into an anguished grimace. “Besides, I dare say that you are being a bit naïve yourself if you think that tricking a stranger would not weigh heavy on your conscience, too.”

Snape slowly lifted his head a little, allowing his chin to come to a rest on the pressed-together tips of his fingers, which were horribly stained from years of daily brewing.

“I don’t think that you are fully aware of what you are getting yourself into here. This would not be like any of your previous sexual encounters, Hermione. There would be no romance, no pleasure, no satisfaction. It would be hard and fast and downright animalistic.” He squared his shoulders. “And though I have never made it a habit to keep up with my students’ private lives, I do not think that it would be wrong of me to assume that an ever-busy academic like you most likely has little experience with such things.”

Hermione felt the warmth creep into the apples of her cheeks as her whole body stiffened, and that movement did not go unnoticed.

“I mean, you do have some experience, right?”

No answer.

“Oh god, you aren’t still a virgin, are you?” Snape rasped despairingly before letting his head fall back into his hands.

Hermione shifted her weight with unease. “I do not attach any value to my virginity if that is the problem, sir,” she was quick to assure him, glad to know that he could not see how awfully red-faced she was at that very instant. “When you think about it, it’s really nothing but a social construct. Will I be a different person afterwards? No. Will you be dead should I refuse? Most likely. So the decision is easy, really. The only reason why I … why I haven’t done it yet is because such a situation has simply never arisen before.”

“No! No, this is deranged!” he cried out as his entire body seized up and started to shake. “How could I ever live with myself knowing that I took something like that from you?”

She bit her lower lip. “I very much doubt that it would be that much better to wait for my first true love or maybe even just a drunken night out to come around first,” she argued with furrowed brows. “Because even in that case, it would be awkward and fumbling and, in all likelihood, disappointing. With you, now, it would at least serve a bigger purpose. It would be special – in its own absurd way.”

“I can’t,” he whispered in a quivering voice.

Suddenly feeling bold, Hermione grabbed his wrists and pulled his arms towards her, forcing him to face her.

“You don’t have a choice,” she told him in a beseeching yet stern manner. “You are far too valuable to the Order to stupidly risk your life like this.”

Snape opened his mouth as though to say something in response, but then he quickly closed it again. Pulling free from her grasp, he leaned back until his shoulders were touching the wall against which her bed had been pushed. He looked like a picture of misery. His complexion was of a deathly pale colour, his jaw was clenched, and a few beads of sweat could be seen running down his forehead.

“I do not want to do anything against your will,” he insisted weakly.

“I wouldn’t be too concerned about that if I were you. I –“ She dithered for just a second. Come on, Hermione. Don’t lose him now. “I am rather physically attracted to you.”

His head jerked up in surprise. “You are?”

“Y-yes,” she replied bashfully, all at once feeling dreadfully shy. “I find you quite handsome, actually.”

She was not lying just to make him feel better either. Truth be told, she’d had a slight fascination with him ever since he took over the Defence Against the Dark Arts position during her sixth year, when his passion for the subject really started to shine through – particularly during his more physical demonstrations.

Still, she was glad when he did not ask her to elaborate any further. Watching as he ran a tremulous hand through his jet-black hair, she heard him say, “Surely you are aware of the fact that some men would not take kindly to the fact that you are not chaste anymore?”

“Good!” Hermione huffed exasperatedly. “If they truly measure my worth as a person by who I have given my body to, then I’d rather have them think of me as used goods and leave me alone all together.”

“And what about Weasley?”

She looked at him with confusion in her eyes. “What about him?”

“He seemed … very much opposed to the idea.”

“Oh, he can sod right off!” she snarled angrily, leaping to her feet. “I don’t want anything from him. I never have.”

Walking the short distance to her nearby dressing table, she pulled open one of its drawers and fished out a black hair tie which she then used to fasten her brown curls into a low ponytail at the nape of her neck. Checking her appearance in the half-tarnished mirror, she could see the man rub his hands across his thighs in obvious discomfort.

“It could hurt,” he said in what sounded like a last-ditch effort to keep from having to yield himself to his fate.

Turning around, her mouth twisted into a wry smile.

“I’m sure that I have experienced worse,” she told him calmly, and for a moment, neither one of them said anything. Hermione sat back down next to him. “But like I said, I don’t think you’d ever be actively out to hurt me. I trust you, you know?”

Even though they were mostly hidden behind the blindfold, she could still see his eyebrows lift in surprise. It was abundantly clear that even the mere notion of someone like her trusting someone like him seemed utterly unfathomable to the dark wizard.

There was another short moment of heavy silence. Then, a deep sigh escaping his lips, he finally asked, “Are you really sure?”

The tone of his voice nearly broke her heart. He was normally such an assertive and stern man, but now he just sounded so defeated. It made for an easy choice.

“Yes.”

(Click here for chapter 3!)

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[thecoroutfitters]

A speech that is motivational a kind designed to deliver a convincing and inspiring message – this oftentimes messages listeners are required to do something upon/ implement inside their very own everyday lives/ communities to boost themselves or their instant environment.

Focusing on how to provide a brief or speech that is long motivational particularly very important to pupils from a specialist viewpoint simply because they might get handling roles and could need certainly to motivate or guide individuals from time for you to time. This article comprises big selection of motivational message subjects along with pair of recommendations for structuring a successful motivational message.

Motivational Speech Value & Construction

Motivational message is essential since it helps concentrate peoples attention on reaching opinion on an issue or even for leading and synchronizing individual or collective efforts towards doing an action, trying to find or applying methods to a provided issue.

It doesn’t matter what speech that is motivational they are derived from, such speeches frequently share some traditional structural elements – they focus on extremely interesting, shocking remarks or with very appropriate information for public whose attention needs to be captured.

This is explained, supported with evidence, reasoning, or real-life examples after that, either a problem is stated or an argument/ position is presented – for both cases. A reasonably typical closing for motivational speeches is just a proactive approach, be it a noticeable improvement in behavior, worldview, or something like that else.

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Monroe’s Motivated series

Monroe’s motivated series is an approach of persuading a gathering or interlocutor, which can be relevant to a variety that is wide of subjects which have persuasive component. This series is comprised of five important components/ actions:

Capture attention – do that through storytelling, making use of humor, shocking statistics, inspiring quotations, rhetorical questions, etc. You can do that through 1 moment to 5 moment intervention dependent on just how much you need to state right right right here and according to exactly just how long you have actually allocated for whole message.

Illustrate the need – you ought to illustrate/ encourage audience so it possesses emotional or other types of need that isn’t likely to disappear completely on it’s own and which requires action for attaining desired outcome. This means that you ought to show (using arguments, persuasion, proof) that there’s a significant issue, that adversely impacts market, and therefore handling it can bring significant advantages whilst not doing this will have negative consequences. The point that is main to help make market desperate to embrace proposed way to this issue.

Fulfill the need – present solutions that address certain dilemmas. Solutions as well as your place should always be well-explained, viable, according to convincing examples or data, on top-notch and data that are trustworthy sources. During this period, presenters should always be additionally prepared to convincingly refute counterarguments.

Visualize the long run. This may be done for starters or each of after situations: if option would be used as well as in situation it’s not. You ought to be since detailed as you are able to in depicting each situation deficient that is– current drawbacks must be presented obviously, the same as great things about a brighter future ensuing from adopting mentioned solution. To make certain credibility, it is necessary why these visions are practical and never exaggerated/ inflated.

Inspire action – inform market about certain actions they take for handling/ solving problem. This may be done through a quick 2 moment to 3 minute intervention but a whole lot more time must be devoted with respect to the subject as well as on exactly exactly exactly what part action posseses a story that is overall. Don’t set exaggerated and many objectives but involvement that is rather encourage detail by detail solutions, you may earnestly be involved in or arrange follow-up occasions.

100 Motivational Speech Topics for Pupils

Below is a genuine and comprehensive listing of motivational speech subjects designed for university students, for youth as a whole, for anybody else interested and that could be applied straight or could act as motivation source for relevant subjects:

Company & Management Topics

Beginning your business that is own in United States – key classes about determination

Art of coping with problems

Many failures that are epic my specialization industry and after that individuals recovered gloriously

Key features effective startups have actually in accordance

Teamwork importance in a business that is emerging

Exactly just How nowadays, innovative a few ideas result in corporations in record terms

Smart contracts enabled by blockchain technology – a large transformative potential.

exactly just What would world seem like whenever cryptocurrency is completely used & incorporated?

Key technologies that are innovative final five years analyzed as investment possibilities

Making use of customer comments by companies for self-improvement

Business duty being a tool that is valuable humanizing face of organizations

Inspiring responsibility that is corporate (jobs implemented in developing communities, environmentally targeted campaigns, etc.)

Benefits for resilience related to larger organizations

Triumph in enforcing clear and reasonable operations that are financial

Spaced repetition part in perfecting study product, its reliance that is direct on

Present generations will bring that radical modification required for addressing worldwide warming & air pollution issues

Preparing for a tremendously quickly evolving employment market – just what abilities should US students give attention to?

Academic Topics

Learning or employed in a multicultural environment advantages

Showing on privilege of profiting from an education that is high-quality

Lifelong learning value & constant expert self-improvement

Advantages caused by being the first ever to master appearing technologies

Underestimated competence to be in a position to effectively & quickly find extremely information that is specific Web (using search formulas, scripts, etc.)

Pro success key determinants according to statistical studies

Training beyond professional attainment

Class curriculum as unifying/ binding force

Schools without research – prospective advantages connected with such paradigm change

Effective stories the usa learns from – Finland system that is educational

Free university/ college training should always be a universal right in United States Of America

Ecological Topics

Avoiding polarization pertaining to ecological dilemmas among present pupils

Great tips on steering clear of the many problems that are common by United States pupils after graduation

Balanced life that is social & entertainment for scholastic success

Inspiring tales and methods of handling mental challenges and anxiety when having a medical or medical work

Individual gratitude believed towards medical & medical workers as a motivation that is important employed in this industry

Supportive groups and environments as a benefit that is important of jobs

Medical jobs are rewarding for social individuals because of possibilities for social relationship

A lengthy average lifespan all over the world as a significant merit of present advanced level medication

Crisis injections with oxygen-containing lipid microvesicles as a way that is innovative save your self everyday lives

Injections with expandable beads into available wounds as a way to end bleeding that is severe accidents and conserve life

Utilizing temperatures that are low surgery (to stop mind harm)

Advantages for the united states culture ensuing from more assets in preventive medication measures

Exactly just How some substances that are psychedelic aid in dealing with despair relating to technology

Growing the kids in closer connection with nature – a real means to prevent asthma

Educating behavior that encourages charitable functions in your kids

Nature vs Nurture Topics

Women empowerment – a take on the final 3 generations (with examples from actual life)

Exactly What it indicates become a guy into the twenty-first century (concentrate on values, worldview)

just How families should cope with the difficulties of modern life

Being truly a model for the young ones from various views: professional, individual development, part played in the neighborhood, household, etc.

Need for exposing kiddies and adolescents to types of effective and people that are honorable

Need for interacting actually together with your young ones in their everyday lives

Underrated art of patience & quiet observation

Sound head, sound human anatomy

Learning meditation that is basic for better self-control

Meditation kinds & that which we study from each

Scientific proof that meditation somewhat affects our gene phrase

Certain kinds of meditation make feasible empathy “training”

Meditating minds under Magnetic Resonance Imaging – inspiring classes and conclusions

How exactly to be open-minded & adaptive – the difficulties of self-improvement in a world that is increasingly dynamic

Why you ought to constantly attempt to be better but be realistic regarding the expectations

Self-improvement – why changing our actions may be the shortcut to changing whom we have been

Tales coping with character change – the grail that is holy of

Looking for the evasive formula of originality in modern art

Types of heroic deeds done by experts throughout history

Topics about Technology

The revolution in effectiveness brought by AI and device learning

Opting for the future that is green just exactly exactly what key actions are anticipated from us?

just exactly How people changing their lifestyles could reshape entire cities – the illustration of biking in Copenhagen & Amsterdam

Ways that metropolitan areas may encourage lifestyles that are environmentally friendly

Electric cars mean the air in future megalopolises will be breathable

Fast transition to solar power will deal with numerous health conditions produced by smog

Shift in profitability – solar power has become less expensive than thermoelectric power in a lot of countries

Will transitioning to Tesla automobiles be because fast as transitioning from horses to cars

Exactly just How hefty opportunities in renewable power sources trigger really cheap or electricity that is free

The boost that is economic possible by free electricity created from renewable sources

Irrigating deserts with desalinated water running on renewable energy

Harnessing wave and energy that is tidal

Analysis on nuclear fusion products (stellarators, tokamaks) in a position to deliver energy that is virtually unlimited

Mastering nuclear fusion might have a profound civilization-wide effect

Cities as a method to truly save on infrastructure expenses while delivering high criteria of life because of its inhabitants

Techniques for applying more powerful relationships between city inhabitants and nature

Diet plans that assistance reduce impact that is environmental animal enduring

Why even non-vegetarians alter their food diets in environmentally ways that are impactful

Simple guidelines any home could follow to alter effect on environment

Changing our shopping practices and philosophy to reduce impact that is environmental

The impact that is positive electric container barges introduced by Tesla might have on maritime transport and environment

Science Subjects

just What possibilities are exposed by drones for package delivery

Sharing self-driving electro-cars for passenger transportation – will this end up being the future taxi solution?

just How would Hyperloop replace the world with regards to transport rate and schedules that are reliable

Impactful price cuts for room research permitted by reuse and recovery of first phases (rocket boosters)

Curiosity Rover – the miracle of watching Martian sunsets

Why computer scripts are completely indispensable for successful drone landing on Mars

Leads of developing self-sufficient colonies on Mars

Opportunities exposed by a thorough variety of satellites that may monitor every square inch on world in real-time ( very early warnings about tsunamis, earthquakes, enhanced farming, essaypro reddit re solving traffic congestion, better climate forecast, etc.)

Leads for handling the false information epidemics on online

Individuals undermine empires – success tales of people whom brought modification to entire nations/ areas

Revisiting the part of church in a society that is modern

Good thinking – training yourself in mastering this art

Effective Motivational Speech Topics

Humans – animals on two feet and ungrateful (F. Dostoevsky)

Democracy cannot succeed unless people who express their option are quite ready to choose knowledgeably. The genuine protect of democracy, therefore, is training. (Franklin D. Roosevelt)

“There’s no key of life. Life’s aim, if it offers one, is just become constantly interested in temptations.” (Oscar Wilde)

“If there should be difficulty allow it to be during my time that my kid could have peace.” (Tom Paine)

“Whatever you are doing may be insignificant, however it is important it. which you do” (Mahatma Gandhi)

“Ability is really what you are with the capacity of doing. Inspiration determines everything you do. Personality determines how good it is done by you.” (Lou Holtz)

You’ll also find more topics for motivational speeches on our site, such as for instance our commemorative message tips rubric or our demonstration message topics rubric. Numerous funny motivational subjects are located in our comprehensive listings of funny topics (as an example, among our lists of funny persuasive message topics).

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[shawnpoupard-blog]

15 Serious Facts about High School Stress

Every parent and educator must know these troubling facts about our teens. Each fact is a wake-up call, but together they should mean: “Time for Code Red”

This blog was written by the Bachelor’s Degree Online and published with its permission.

One of the greatest lies ever perpetuated about the teen years is that they’re supposedly “the best years of your life.” Ask any high schooler these days how he or she genuinely feels about this statement and the opposite sentiment might very well end up relayed instead.

Every year, more and more pressures regarding classes, getting into the right college (or deciding if college is even the right choice), families, jobs, extracurricular activities, friends, relationships, and other stimuli just keep burbling away beneath their still-developing forms.

Suffice it to say, this avalanche of stress hinders their progress and personalities far more than it helps, but many think they have no real alternative. Without persistently striving toward an unattainable perfection, students find themselves trapped between success or failure, with no “gray areas” in between.

And the situation worsens every year, although there are plenty of things administrators, teachers, parents, and even the teens themselves can to do promote calmness and balance. Before that, though, they should understand exactly what’s at stake when it comes to stress and anxiety in the high school classroom.

1. Most high school students consider cheating OK: According to a CNN poll of 4,500 high schoolers, around 75% engage in “serious cheating,” over half plagiarize directly from the Internet, and about 50% believe that copying answers doesn’t even count as cheating. Such questionable ethics apparently stem directly from absurd competition, since grades mean the difference between getting into a dream school and a backup. To alleviate the mounting stress to constantly perform at the highest level, students turn toward cheating and compromising their own education as a solution.

2. One in five teens qualifies as clinically depressed: According to Mental Health America’s estimates, 20% of teens are clinically depressed, and the real tragedy lies with how their parents and teachers approach the subject. Because so many dismiss the symptoms of depression as mere adolescent adjustments, a disconcerting number of these teens go without the treatment they need to enjoy a healthy, happy life.

Obviously, depression stems from numerous factors beyond just heightened academic pressures. But they certainly render already painful situations even worse, regardless of whether or not they exist as the root cause.

3. Stress ups the suicide rate…: Over in the UK, Oakgrove head teacher John Harkin told The Guardian that anywhere between 600 to 800 students between the ages of 15 and 24 commit suicide annually. A poll of 804 teachers revealed that 73% considered school (and life in general) far more stressful for students than in the previous decade, which more than likely contributes to the climbing suicide rate. Eighty-nine percent believed high-stakes classroom assignments and exams played a major (if not the premiere) role in nurturing anxiety.

4. …oh, and self-harm, too: Beyond suicide, though, British students also cause self-harm in greater numbers than before, correlating with the increase in school and other life pressures. As reported by The Guardian, 46% of polled teachers claimed they knew of kids in middle and high school harming themselves. Cutting seems to be the most popular trend beneath this tragic umbrella, although anorexia — which, by the way, has little to do with simply wanting to “be skinny” — and other eating disorders appear on the rise as well.

5. The same thing happens in the U.S., too: The problem of depression, anxiety and suicide transcends nationality, and The Almanac printed statistics from the National Institutes of Health and its study on random San Francisco students. Although obviously not indicative of the whole nation’s risk, it did highlight the relationship between stress and mental health taxing the youth. A staggering 30% of the city’s high schoolers suffered beneath a suicide risk, and one institution in particular (Menlo-Atherton High School) saw 40 teens forced to go under behavior monitoring within a year.

6. Some schools have purged the AP Program altogether…: Despite the prestige heaped onto offering Advanced Placement classes and harboring students who get stellar scores on the affiliated exams, some schools have decided to forgo them completely. These college-level courses taught in high school require a heftier workload than their level and honors counterparts, and institutions like Beaver Country Day School in Massachusetts don’t think the inflated stress is worth the emotional and physiological toll. So they’ve obliterated the program, which they claim has no impact whatsoever on graduates’ eventual college acceptance and success.

7. …and managed to implement some successful alternatives, too: Along with jettisoning the AP Program, some schools — like the aforementioned Beaver Country Day School — have decided to implement other measures to keep students from succumbing to stress. More low-key assignments, like shooting videos or writing songs, prove just as effective as more rote, lecture-based methods used in traditional classrooms. Other strategies include weekends with no homework assigned, improved communication between teachers so major exams don’t correspond with those in other classes, and longer study and recreation periods. Once again, the school reports that these strategies improve the quality of life for their students without compromising their academic performance or potential.

8. And the teachers on the front lines could be doing better as well: Regardless of whether or not they work in a school experimenting with more stress-reduction methods, teachers themselves could generally do better when nurturing mentally and emotionally healthy students, especially those teachers with Advanced Placement kiddos under their care. Menlo-Atherton High School math teacher Jerry Brodkey practices empathy in his classroom, tailoring his workloads to maximize education while minimizing anxiety. Such a simple concept and awareness of his students’ lives beyond his calculus and algebra classes resulted in improved scores once AP Exam time rolled around. Not to mention some seriously positive teacher evaluations mentioning how the relaxed atmosphere better facilitated learning and information retention.

9. It starts much earlier than high school: Increased college competition means increased high school competition. Increased high school competition means increased middle school competition. Increased middle school competition means increased elementary school competition. Once students get to the last four compulsory grades, the pressure to constantly excel and perform has already been shoved into their growing bodies. So when kids do succumb to the pressures, chances are they may very well have been lurking beneath the surface long before freshman year.

10. Female students feel it harder than their male peers: A survey conducted by the Associated Press and MTV discovered that of the 85% of students claiming they experienced “stress at least sometimes” (if not more than that), most were female. Forty-five percent reported they felt it “frequently,” compared to 32% of their male colleagues. Most disconcertingly, the trend seemed to reflect an increase in stress and anxiety levels when compared to surveys from the year before — at least 10 points higher, says MSNBC. Interestingly enough, students hailing from mid-range income families experienced far more pressure than those from low- or high-income ones.

11. Girls are more likely to suppress their stress: Not only are female students more likely to experience hefty amounts of stress, they also typically handle it more discreetly than males. However, the boys don’t always handle it healthily, either — according to Dr. Roni Cohen-Sandler, they typically react to the anxieties by dropping out mentally. Social pressures push girls towards constant perfection in school, extra-curriculars, appearances, relationships and friendships without ever growing ragged or showing signs of exhaustion (what sociologist Michael Kimmel refers to as “effortlessly perfect”). In fact, 55% told the psychologist they place almost unnecessary amounts of stress on themselves to maintain society’s near-impossible expectations of flawlessness.

12. School ranks as the highest stressor in high school students’ lives: For both females and males between the ages of 13 and 17, school stood as their primary conduit of super stress. Once they hit the 18-to-25-year-old demographic, work supplants academics. But high schoolers face down more anxieties than that, including (but not limited to) bullying, broken homes, substance abuse (or the temptation towards substance abuse), relationships and sex, jobs, extracurricular activities, appearances and more. Girls and young women in particular find themselves petrified for safety reasons at a higher rate than their male counterparts, as they’re more likely to be the victims of rape and sexual assault.

13. GPAs are increasing: In California, at least, where state schools saw a significant rise in the GPAs of incoming freshman between 2003 and 2009. Petaluma360.com’s Colleen Rustad noted that UC Davis transitioned from a 3.86 to a 4.0 average, and Berkeley witnessed an increase from 3.58 to 3.61. So while some modicum of positivity can be squeezed out of the overworked teenagers’ plight, the serious mental and physical health tolls often render them a rather Pyrrhic victory instead.

14. Parents can exacerbate the situation…: Even the most well-meaning, loving moms and dads (or grandparents or aunts or uncles or legal guardians) run the risk of contributing to Little Junior or Muffy’s ever-mounting anxiety. Although parents and guardians should encourage and support their kids’ academic and (within reason) personal goals, they should stay alert for signs of burnout as well. Success (ethically earned, of course) is always great, but should never take precedence over the health, safety and overall well-being of a student, either. The likelihood of entering an Ivy League university even with a perfect record sits between 7% and 18%, and there’s no shame in pointing kids toward more affordable — and still thoroughly viable — options requiring less strenuous high schooling.

15. …but they’re also key in making it better: Dr. Cohen-Sandler’s research revealed that less than 50% of the most stressed-out female students believed their parents and guardians didn’t notice the mental and physical cracks forming. Along with “less stress” and “more sleep,” the primary thing this demographic desires is more communication and support from parents and guardians. They believe bouncing their feelings off a more experienced individual who knows them well will prove game-changing in better managing their time, emotions, friendships, and other messy hallmarks of being a teen. In addition, tighter-knit, more genuine social circles and the eradication of “mean girls” will considerably help ease the transition into adulthood.