Team Bonding: A Fun Pres Tradition

Team bonding is a long time tradition that sports teams, including Presentation, partake in. While team bonding is a fun event for team members, it is also a vital component for a successful season.

Sports teams that are already unified can become stronger after bonding. Team bonding helps the players build chemistry on and off the field. It leads to the team being able to play well together and helps form lasting friendships.

According to a study called “Team Building for Youth Sports,” published by the Journal of Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance, team chemistry “is believed to go a long way toward helping a group of athletes achieve a common goal.” This is true, the study’s authors found, in both task-oriented and social situations.

Often, at the beginning of each Pres season, the returning players will welcome the new players with quirky traditions and fun festivities. Teams focus on getting to know the newer players in a social environment to ensure stronger communication on the field or court.

While some people envision team bonding as having players do trust exercises, like falling back into someone’s hopefully open arms, Pres traditions focus more on getting a little crazy. A common practice among teams is to dress the newest players in funny and ridiculous costumes and assigning each player small tasks to perform, such as dancing in a mini-flash mob or singing happy birthday to a plant in a public setting.

For example, Varsity Soccer team’s bonding this year included the new members of the soccer team singing Christmas carols in the food court of the mall, dressing up in funny clothes and makeup, and attending Bellarmine’s Sanguine Humors Show to support a teammate in the show.

Soccer senior Megan McArthur said, “We wanted to make sure that the girls had a lot of fun while getting to know us better. Luckily for us, all the players on the soccer team were well-versed in Christmas carols and had no trouble singing in front of crowds.”

After the fun, the team will usually eat dinner together and spend the night as a team, sharing stories, playing games and eating, which brings the team together creating a solid unification.

Field Hockey player Emma Manzano, junior, said, “Our team bonding is always an event I look forward to because it brings the team closer together.”

Stacy Mallison, Athletic Director and Varsity Soccer head coach, commented on the current soccer team’s chemistry.

“I noticed that this year’s soccer team is a lot closer than teams of the years past. The team has gotten together outside of practice many different times, and I see this pay off on the field.”

All in all, team bonding brings players closer together, uniting them under common experiences and allowing new players to participate in team traditions. The memories made during these events are not only remembered throughout the season but also through the athlete’s time at Presentation.

Player Profile: Aly Murakami

Aly Murakami is currently a senior at Presentation High School and is one of the primary point guards on the varsity team. When out of the classroom, she can be seen wearing jersey #10, dribbling up and down the court executing impressive plays and scoring crucial points during high-intensity games. Even though she was injured during the majority of the last year’s season from suffering a tear in her ACL, she has recovered and is ready to bring her “A” game on the court. The Voice had the opportunity to speak with Aly about her basketball career and the upcoming season.

The Voice: When and why did you start playing basketball?
AM: I started playing basketball when I was in kindergarten because my brother used to play and I just wanted to be like him. My parents also played when they were younger too, so it just runs in the family.

The Voice: What’s your typical week schedule like during the season?
AM: During the season we practice Monday through Saturday and we have games at least twice a week. So after school I normally go home, do homework for a few hours and come back to Pres to practice. I try not to waste time and do my best to get things done as soon as possible.

The Voice: What’s your favorite thing about this sport? What’s the hardest thing about it?
AM: I like how basketball is a team sport.  My teammates push me as hard as I push them, which is helpful. But, I think the hardest part about the sport is just being able to read the game because it takes a lot of intelligence to understand what things need to be done, especially as a point guard.

The Voice: What are you most looking forward to this season?
AM: We have a really young team this season, so I’m looking forward to helping the new players because I was in their situation four years ago. Also, I’m looking forward to having a good season by keeping the C.C.S. title and hopefully win W.C.A.L. again.

The Voice: The team lost some key players from last year; how do you feel about this and how will this affect the team?
AM: We lost nine people; eight of them were seniors. Also, four out of our five starters are gone so we’re going to have a completely different team this year and a different style of playing.

The Voice: What makes Pres’ basketball team unique from all the other teams out there?
AM: I think this year we’re really close and we work well with each other around the court.

The Voice: Who’s your biggest rival and how will the team prepare?
AM: Our biggest rival has always been Mitty. We know their style because we play them all the time, so I think we’re just going to work hard in practices and prepare on defense and offense.

The Voice: If you didn’t play basketball, what other sport(s) would you play?
AM: I think soccer because I used to play when I was younger, until I stopped in eighth grade to play basketball.

The Voice: What was your proudest basketball moment?
AM: It might have been when our team won the C.C.S. championships last year.

The Voice: What advice would you give to a person who just started playing basketball?
AM: Probably just to work hard during practices and keep learning from your mistakes.

The Voice: What do you do in the off-season?
AM: I play basketball year-round, so there’s not much off-season for me.

The Voice: If you could play one on one against one player, alive or dead, who would it be? Why?
AM: I would probably want to play against Rajon Rondo from the Boston Celtics because I think he’s a really good player and I could learn a lot from him just by playing one-on-one.

Presentation Alumni Share Their Experiences as College Athletes

Today, college sports are glorified almost as much as professional sports. Players like Stanford’s Andrew Luck are garnering as much—if not more—media attention than current NFL stars. While college games are exciting to watch, and even more fun to attend, what the televised games do not portray is how the pressure of sports at the collegiate level affects its athletes. Our Pres alumnae gave The Voice an inside view to what it’s like to be a collegiate competitor.

While most college students arrive on campus for their first classes around mid-September, most student-athletes have already begun training for their intense pre-season during the summer. Athletes often characterize pre-season preparation as the most extreme because classes have yet to begin, so almost every minute of their day is dedicated towards their sport.

Emma Caringello, who plays soccer for Boston University, compares her pre-season schedule to that of a professional athlete: “We have breakfast, then a two-and-a-half hour morning session, a lunch break, followed by a two-and-a-half hour afternoon session, dinner, and then a two-hour team meeting.”

However, once school starts, athletes need to balance school and their sport. A Pres alum, who plays field hockey, but cannot be named due to her school’s media policies, says that as long as she makes schedules and manages her time, schoolwork doesn’t become too unbearable.

During the season, most athletes will practice two to three hours a day, followed by a weight training once a week. However, because some athletes must travel out of state, or even cross-country for away games, college students will often miss anywhere from one to two weeks of school.

Although missing class is a huge disadvantage of playing sports in college, universities often do as much as they can in order to ensure their athletes’ academic success. Caringello says that Boston University allows its collegiate athletes to register 30 minutes before their other classmates. BU also provides a student athlete support services building that offer tutoring for athletes. Stephanie Sorg, who plays soccer for Santa Clara University says that SCU’s athletic program works hard to help student-athletes combat procrastination. “To help us balance school and soccer our athetic academic support manager makes sure that we put in at least six hours of study time in the library a week. The time set aside allows us to complete our work and get in any studying that we need. Having mandatory study hall decreasese that margin of being “lazy” and skimming on our work.”

According to Pres alumni, other benefits to playing a sport in college are the close friendships that they develop with members on their team and with players in other sports. Because athletes operate on a different type of social calendar (one that does not include alcohol) than the typical college-goer, they often spend their weekends on creative outings with their team. Also, playing a sport is a fantastic way to meet new people, they say, especially if you’re new to the school and aren’t yet familiar with the student body.

While many students readily praise the advantages of playing sports at the collegiate levels, some Pres alumni have had negative experiences. Sarah Cole, who was recruited to play volleyball for Davis, quit the volleyball program before the onset of the academic year.

“My current major is mechanical engineering with materials science, which would have been virtually impossible [to manage] during the volleyball season,” she explains. Sarah also offered some helpful advice to student-athletes who discover that collegiate sports are not what they initially expected

“My advice to student-athletes would be to treat the recruitment process like a two-way street. I think when I was talking to coaches, I acted like I was being interviewed, but really, I should’ve been interviewing them as well. You’re going to be working with them every day for the next four years, so it’s important that your values and expectations align. I don’t regret quitting the Davis team at all; if it doesn’t feel right, it’s not and it is perfectly fine to change your mind.”

Overall, while most of our alumni describe collegiate sports as much more difficult than the high-school level, they still recommended pursuing playing a sport in college. “It’s a whole different college experience; it’s difficult and something that you have to work at every day, but it’s definitely worth it!” says Caringello.

Concussions 101

According to the Center for Disease Control, sports concussion in the United States have reached an epidemic level of 1.6-3.8 million.

For every 100,000 female soccer athletes per year, 33-35 girls sustain concussions while boys’ soccer statistics include only 17-19 sustained concussions. Girls’ basketball has reported an average of 16-18 concussions per 100,000 athletes per year and the boys possess a lower statistic of 11-12 concussions.

The reasons for the higher rate of concussions within female athletes is currently unknown, but many theorize that female athletes biologically have weaker neck muscles and a smaller head mass than male athletes. Another theory for more reported female concussions is that male athletes are more likely to avoid reporting symptoms of a concussion due to their fear of appearing to be “weak.”

But whether the athlete is male or female, once he or she has sustained a concussion, why is it that when an athlete receives a head injury, fans expect a quick recovery, but if the athlete had torn a ligament they are sympathetic and understand the prolonged absence? Fans’ sympathy often directly correlates to physical symptoms, and because concussions have none, many people do not understand and sympathize with the severity of head trauma.

The brain is a soft organ that is surrounded by spinal fluid and protected by the hard skull. On a daily basis, the fluid around your brain acts like a cushion to keep your brain from banging against your skull. If the head or body is hit hard enough, the brain can collide with the skull, causing an injury to the brain.

Concussions can last for hours, days, weeks or even months. Because the period of a concussion can last for a varied length of time, it is difficult to determine if an athlete has sustained a concussion. More serious cases of concussions include the concussed person blacking out after the injury or not remembering how it occurred.

Presentation’s McKenzie Lanier, junior, unfortunately has sustained two diagnosed concussions, both while playing her favorite sport: soccer. Her first concussion happened almost a year ago when she, as goal keeper, dove for the ball during a game. One of the members of the opposing team continued to run into Lanier’s head on the ground, kicking her on the lower left side of her head.

“I did not black out or lose consciousness, but had an immediate headache and numbness in my hands and feet,” Lanier says. “I also felt nauseous and had blurred vision.”

She is currently dealing with concussion that she sustained August 7 of this year. “I was playing for my club team in a San Luis Obispo tournament and we were in the championship game,” she recalls. “I personally do not remember anything that happened or how I got the concussion, but I was told that I went up for a header off of a kick [in the air] and another girl from the other team went up for the same header. She butted my head instead of the ball.”

Athletes who sustain a concussion should not jump back into their sport until all symptoms have diminished due to the risk of sustaining multiple concussions, permanent brain damage or even death.

Symptoms of a concussion include: lack of concentration, memory loss, headaches, blurry vision, nausea, dizziness, constant fatigue, lack of balance, emotional sensitivity, increase or decrease of sleep or a lack of interest in usual activities.

Julia Murphy, Presentation’s athletic trainer, says that she sees about ten to fifteen concussions per year in Presentation athletes. Murphy stated, “Concussions range by the season, typically. Fall, anywhere from four to six, winter from six to ten, and spring from zero to two.”

Presentation, as well as many other schools, requires all athletes to take the Impact Test, which scores activities such as reaction time, memory and concentration, before they are allowed to participate on a sport team.

The test establishes a baseline of the student’s ability to do things such as count backwards while memorizing three different letters, remember line patterns, react to flashing shapes and word association with colors. After an athlete is thought to be concussed, she will take the test again to compare her baseline scores to her current concussed scores.

The goal is that at the end of the concussion, the athlete will be able to take the test after a full symptom-free 24 hours without medication and receive scores similar to her baseline scores. This means that she will be cleared to return to physical activity.

Murphy explains that the brain must interpret and process all external stimuli–such as sound, light and speech, which is why she advises her concussed athletes to avoid activities that may prolong their symptoms. “Unfortunately, the only way one can treat a concussion is to completely rest, from everything! No exercise. No TV. No texting. No computer. No school even. It’s like having a sprained ankle – if you sprained it and then kept walking on it, it would delay the healing process.”

Unfortunately, Lanier has suffered one of the few “unlucky” injuries that does not have a specific prevention. She epitomizes the common symptoms when she states, “The worst side effect is most definitely the headaches because I have them pretty much from the time school starts from the time I go to bed. Some other side effects are nausea, lack of concentration over extended periods of time, loss of memory, dizziness, sensitivity, [slow] reaction time and irritability.”

Concussions are equally as severe as any other injury an athlete may suffer and should not be taken lightly. The best way to deal with one who is concussed is to be patient and allow the brain to naturally heal and make sure that the symptoms completely diminish.

 

Player Profile: Emily Sklar

Emily Sklar is currently a senior at Presentation High School and is one of the stars on the varsity volleyball team, playing as an outside hitter. Her perseverance, dedication and full commitment to the sport has truly shaped her into a fierce competitor. This past summer, she attended the 2011 USA Volleyball Junior National Championship and was one out of 15 girls selected as an All-American. She has also recently committed to playing volleyball at Duke next year. The Voice had an opportunity to speak with Emily about her volleyball career and what to look out for this upcoming season.

The Voice: When and how did you start playing volleyball?

ES: I started in the fifth grade, but I didn’t really think I would do it seriously. During my freshman year, tryouts were the first week of school and the Athletic Director was Ryan [Cooling] then. He came up to me at lunch and asked me why I hadn’t tried out. So I came the last day of tryouts and he put me on the freshman team.

The Voice: Do you play on a club team? Which one?

ES: Yes, I play for Vision.

The Voice: What’s your favorite thing about the sport?

ES: My favorite thing is probably no contact because you don’t get hurt; but it’s just satisfying to hit the ball and have it hit the ground.

The Voice: If you didn’t play volleyball, what other sport(s) would you play and why?

ES: I would probably play soccer because I used to play since I was in kindergarten. I played freshman year, but I quit after that.

The Voice: What are your goals for this upcoming season?

ES: This season I feel like we’re kind of underdogs, since we lost a lot of people. So I think we just want to be a come-from-behind team that no one expects. I don’t want to be overlooked, but I think I just want to surprise people.

The Voice: Who do you think would be the team to beat this year? How will the team prepare?

ES: I think the team to beat this year would be Saint Francis. We would have to prepare mentally because we lost to them either four or five times last year, so I think it’s kind of a revenge match.

The Voice: Do you think the team is closely bonded? Do you have any traditions you like to do during the season?

ES: I think we have a lot of new players, so we don’t really know each other all that well yet, but I think that everyone gets along so far and we bond pretty well. We have our initiation and we kind of just make that up as we go along. We have a lot of people to initiate this year and we do little pregame dance, which is a little hard to explain.

The Voice: Have you experienced any downfall? What have you learned from it?

ES: The biggest downfall was probably losing to Saint Francis three times in the post season last year. I think it was kind of upsetting because we beat them three times before and we came to the matches when it really mattered and we couldn’t pull through.

The Voice: When you receive any constructive criticism from your coaches, how do you turn it around into something positive?

ES: I guess I just look at what they’re saying is something that I should be doing and they just want me to be a better player, looking out for me and the team. I think listening to it is important, because it’s just not about me it’s about helping the whole team plan.

The Voice: What would you like to improve on?

ES: Maybe being more of a leader and being louder. I’m naturally not very talkative, so I probably would like to be more emotional and encouraging, I guess.

The Voice: What was your proudest volleyball moment?

ES: When we won the Santa Barbara Tournament last year.

Team Motivation Tips

“The best way to be motivated is to receive positive reinforcement,” says freshman Sofia Debrushin. Many other athletes and performers would agree that positive feedback seems to fuel positive results. Journalist Harvey Greer says, “One way for the coach to help develop this level of trust is by seeing that every time he or an assistant coach corrects a mistake, the conversation will end on a positive note.”

    But as a captain or leader of a school sports team, you are not a coach and sometimes it is difficult to motivate teammates who are around the same age as you. Teams stuck in a rut can be difficult to motivate, and thinking of ways to be a great motivator takes tremendous effort as well. Pres coaches seem to know how to fire up the most stagnant teams, from pep talks to team bonding; Panther teams seem to always be filled with spirit. Here a few tips from the Presentation coaches that will help raise the spirits and fire up a not-so-peppy team.

Marisa Watts Cozort: Varsity swim coach.

“I find the best way to motivate my swimmers is to tell them that it is possible to manage school and swim. They can get up early to go to practice and still manage school work. I find it helpful if I give them something to relate to, I did it, and they can too.”

1. Like Marisa give your teammates something to relate to, provide them with a scenario of one time that you struggled to get something done, but you managed to pull through. If they know that it is possible to balance all the stresses of life and still have a winning season, they will push themselves to make it happen. Personal experiences will also help your team open up to you, if they know you trust them enough to share a personal experience they will trust you to lead and motivate them.

Mr. Wang: JV and Varsity basketball coach.

“I give my team goals to work on every game, box out, attack the hoop. Set the score aside for a second, if they can reach those goals, they can win the game.”

1. Try to work on goals with your team and set them for each game. Don’t focus on winning, focus rather on reaching those goals. If they have the opportunity to put winning to the back of their mind, they can work on improving their weaknesses. Focus on setting new goals every game, this will reassure the team that there is progress occurring and that they are doing well and not having trouble with the same concept every time.  

Mr. Schmuck: JV Golf coach.

“Focus is always on the team vs. the individual. This seems to take the focus off of how one individual plays vs. their individual opponent”

1.   Never focus on the flaws of one person, if they mess up, encourage the team to move past it and reassure the person they it is okay to mess up once in a while. Avoid talking about mistakes during your motivational talks; rather focus on all the things that went well. Highlight a play that went really successfully or point out an outstanding action that someone did. Try  to  motivate all players to focus on the team and not themselves because this will take the pressure   off them and they will be less likely to crack during an intense time.

Whether you’re a coach, captain or team leader, motivating a team is always a key component to the team’s success. Motivating a team is never easy but with a few tips from these spirited coaches boosting the energy of your unmotivated sports team will be a little bit easier.

Player Profile: Jennifer Fields

Jennifer Fields, a senior swimmer at Presentation, is taking on her tenth year of swimming. Swimming only a 27 second 50 meter dash, Fields will surely be a strong competitor this swim season.

1.       When did you first start swimming?

I started swimming about 10 years ago

2.       Why did you start swimming?

My mom was a swimmer, so she put me on swim teams at an early age, so I just kind of evolved a love for it and then that is when I started swimming competitively.

3.       Did you ever try any other sports?

I tried volleyball, soccer and other normal sports during middle school, but I always liked swimming more.

4.       What is your favorite event?

I like distance and breast stroke, so I swim the mile and the 500 and the 1000 meter.

5.       Do you have a proudest moment?

At CCS Freshman year and I just did really well compared to the beginning of the season and I dropped 40 seconds total time in the 500 meter so that was a really happy moment for me and Marisa was cheering on the sidelines for me. It was also at Stanford which was pretty cool.

6.       Do you plan to swim in college?

Ya, I think so, but I don’t know where I’m going to go yet.

7.       Do you swim for a club? What club?

I swim on DACA DeAnza Cupertino Aquatics.

8.       Where is the coolest place you have ever travelled for a meet?

I don’t know if this is exactly cool, but we went down to Mission Viejo one year which is a little bit South of LA.

9.       Do you know your 50 free style time?

27 seconds

10.    What is some advice that you would give to a girl trying to become a swimmer?

Try hard every practice; working hard really helps. Also, always try to improve yourself by working hard and keep at it, even if you had a bad day. Just because you had a bad day, doesn’t mean you’re a bad swimmer.

11.    Who was your main inspiration in the sport?

My mom from the beginning and now it is Natalie Coughlin because she can balance swimming and a social life.

12.    Swimming is usually an individual sport. How close are your team members to each other?

We’re very close! If there is a social event that we are hosting, we will invite swimmers. You build a sense of community even though you’re like dying at practice [laughs].

13.    How do you expect the team will do this year?

I think it is going to be a transition year because we don’t have a lot of seniors. It’s going to be a challenge but I think we will pull through.

Sought Out Seniors

 It’s a new semester, and with that comes more college recruitments for senior athletes. Here are some of your fellow panthers that have committed to colleges for sports.

 Megan White

Recruited for: track and field

Committed to: Concordia University

Sports career: Began running in seventh grade

Achievements: running the Simplot Meet in Idaho, the Dream Indor Meet in Fresno and the Stanford Invitational.

“I like running with other people who have a passion for the sport and have created many friendships throughout my years at Pres.”

Katy Tagart

Recruited for: volleyball

Committed to: University of the Pacific

Sports Career: Began playing in seventh grade.

Achievements: Took third at the Junior Olympics last summer

“I love playing in big matches under pressure. Nothing compares to the feeling of winning a big match with your team.”

 Tori Tsolis

Recruited for: track and field

Committed to: UC Santa Barbara

Sports Career: Has been playing since age 7.

Achievements: 800M WCAL champion freshman and sophomore year, 1600M WCAL champion junior year.

“ What I enjoy most about cross country and track is the team atmosphere. Running seems like an individual sport, but it really takes the support from your entire team to succeed.”

NBA Preview

The 2010- 2011 NBA season is underway as thirty teams take the court, hoping to make a name for themselves as they begin the new season. Much early attention was paid to the Miami Heat as they gained two NBA hot-shots, LeBron James and Chris Bosh, as well as contributions from their returning star Dwanye Wade, critics said that they were going to be the team to beat this year. However, an early loss by the Heat surprised spectators. The three stars clashed as they all battled for the spotlight, causing disjointed playing within the team.

While most writers would agree that Miami Heat will ultimately  prevail at the end of the season, NBA sports writer Marc Spears stated in an e-mail interview, “There was a lot of talk about LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwanye Wade entering the NBA season. But the team that should have been talked about the most was the two-time reigning champion Los Angeles Lakers.”  

As the Los Angeles Lakers enter another season, they appear to have an upper hand yet again this year with the gain of veterans Steve Blake, Matt Barnes and Theo Ratliff, along with their star player Kobe Bryant. The newly-obtained players have provided the Lakers with a stronger bench, which was their weakness last season. Contributing players on the Lakers, such as Lamar Odom, have stepped up their game this year as they fight to win their third consecutive championship.

In addition to the Lakers, the Boston Celtics have recently made a name for themselves, as they have closely battled the Lakers in the championships two years in a row. “The Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics have the biggest advantage due to their familiarity, camaraderie, experience, super coach and overall talent,”said Spears. “Both teams have most of their key players returning while adding quality veterans who fit needed roles. If both teams remain healthy, expect the Lakers and Celtics to be playing in the NBA Finals for the third time in four years this season.”

With the spotlight away from the previous champions, many underdog teams have stepped up in surprising winning streaks and have displayed promise. One team in particular that has taken a remarkable step up since past years is the New Orleans Hornets, who are currently 13-5. Hornets’ star player Chris Paul, who has returned this year after recovering from a torn meniscus, has led his team to amazing successes so far. Another contributing factor to the success of the Hornets is newly-hired coach Monty Williams, who was the assistant coach for the Portland Trailblazers last season.

Locally, the Golden State Warriors have started off much better than usual this season. Starting with a winning record at home, the Warriors have stepped up their game in hopes to bring the Bay Area basketball fans to their feet as they did in 2007. The Warriors’ success this season has sprouted from two key components. During the off-season, the Warriors hired Coach Keith Smart. Smart has worked to develop the Warriors’ defensive skills, which was a huge struggle in prior seasons. Along with gaining a new coach, the Warriors have picked up one of the best defensive players in the NBA, David Lee. Lee’s rebounding abilities have given the Warriors a defensive advantage that will ultimately lead them to success. The health of the Warriors is revitalized, and their spirits are high coming into the new season.

Regardless of what the opinions of the critics may be, the NBA season has just begun, leaving a lot of time for improvements as well as upsets.  The 2010 NBA season should be a promising one for the reigning champions and the Bay Area Warriors as well.

Cutting: The Burden of Emotional Stress

On Nov. 8, Demi Lovato, the Disney Channel star most known for her role in Sonny with a Chance, checked herself into a medical center for professional help and therapy to help her deal with eating disorders and cutting. Besides proving how the celebrity world can destroy a person at any age, this also demonstrates that the issue of cutting can affect anyone, even those who least expect it.

KidsHealth.org states, “Injuring yourself on purpose by making scratches or cuts on your body with a sharp object — enough to break the skin and make it bleed — is called cutting.” The act of cutting is a form of self-injury that is used to control emotional pain. It is cutting through one’s skin in common areas of the arms, thighs, wrists and/or even hips. It is important to know that cutting is not a suicide attempt. Self-injury may feel like a way of “waking up” from a sense of numbness after a traumatic experience.

The average age of beginner cutters is between ages 11 to 14, and it is reported that girls do it more than boys. Statistics show that about 1% of the population of the United States cuts.

These practices of cutting have been going on for decades if not centuries, but it has become less secretive in the past two decades. One of Presentation’s guidance counselors, Ms. Schrader, noted, “Cutting, in the past few years, has become the new anorexia and is used as a way for students to feel relief over ‘gaining control’ of situations.”

Once the compulsion to cut is acted upon enough times, it can become a compulsive behavior, just like any bad habit. Usually, when someone is that anxious and stressed, the cutting creates a “high” and certain rush that makes the act addictive. The addiction can happen to anyone, even the least expected.

Veronica* student said, “My friend cut because she never talked about her feelings and needed release, but no one could expect it of her because she was a 4.8 student and a top soccer player. Stress just took over.”

At times, people cut to fit in. Teenagers and young adults have often behaved in ways that they believe will make them popular and fit in, such as drinking and smoking, but now cutting has made that list.

Yes, cutting has become a factor in our society today, but has it affected Presentation? Ms. Schrader believes that it has. “There are a lot of factors to the blanket of stress that leads anyone to cutting, and I think college, technology and expectations play big roles, especially in Presentation.”

Ms. Schrader handles students who have cut or are thinking about cutting by referring them to outside counseling. She calls parents if the student does not want to face them herself because a common symptom of cutting is shame. Ms. Schrader says, “I will not bring up the cutting or why the student wants or needs the outside therapy unless the student asks me to.”

There are common signs of cutters to watch out for. These signs are not always the case of the classic cutter because cutting affects all people. If someone starts wearing long sleeve shirts or many bracelets, talk to them.

Anyone can give into the thought of cutting because it is not a thought-out process; it is an impulse brought on by extravagant emotional pain or stress, yearning to be shown. Cutting is brought on by emotions such as anger, hurt, shame, frustration or alienation. When these emotions aren’t expressed in a healthy manner, tension can be built up and eventually make a person snap.

Most importantly, if you are worried that one of your friends is cutting or if you are cutting secretly, please follow TeensHealth’s to-do list: talk to someone, figure out what emotion is triggering the cutting, ask for help and work on it. Once one is a cutter, she will always be a cutter because relapses can happen.

Veronica* says in order to remind Presentation, “Relapses do happen, especially in times of intense stress, so watch for your friends and yourself.”

Ms. Schrader finds out about most of the cutting at Presentation from the cutter’s friend who has come to her stating that they are worried and concerned for their classmate. Cutting usually comes about because of an underlying reason.

Velma*, “There is a huge misconception in cutting in that it is done for attention, but really it isn’t. When I found out my friend was cutting, I thought she was being dramatic, but it turns out that she really did believe she needed to be punished.”

No one can force someone who self-injures to stop by getting angry and lecturing them on how wrong self-inflicted pain is. Instead, letting a friend know you care and telling them that they deserve to be happy is more successful.

Overall, a new coping method is necessary because the act of cutting is very unhealthy, and if one damages their body, they degrade it. One way to help fight against this self-damaging act is writing “Love” on the wrist, like in the picture provided. It has been done throughout the world to spread awareness.

*Names have been changed

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