Change

12 December 2025

Change can be hard. People like to stick to what they know, and we often do things without even thinking about them — like taking the same way to school every day or eating the same breakfast. Our brains like to take the easy route, so when something new or different happens, it can feel scary or uncomfortable.

 

Change can happen in lots of ways. You might have to move to a new school, stop playing your favourite sport because of an injury or move to a new house. When things like this happen, it can feel like everything is out of control.

 

 

But even when we can’t control what changes, we can still control how we react to them. Try focusing on the things you can control, instead of worrying about the things you can’t. For example:

• If you get hurt and can’t play football, you could still go watch your team play and cheer them on.
• If you move to a new school, try to focus on the fun parts — meeting new people, discovering new places and making new memories.

You can also make small changes every day to help you get used to new things. Try walking a different way to school, trying a new food or talking to someone you don’t usually chat with. These small steps help your brain get used to change and make you more confident when bigger changes happen.

Even though change feels hard, it’s also how we grow and learn. When we look back on times when things changed, we often realise we learned something important — maybe we got braver, more confident or discovered something new about ourselves.

Sometimes, change can make us feel anxious or worried. That’s totally normal! Breathing exercises can really help calm you down in the moment and make you feel in control again. Here are a few you can try:

• Box breathing: Breathe in for 4 counts, hold for 4, breathe out for 4 and hold again for 4. Repeat a few times.
• Starfish breathing: Hold one hand out like a starfish. Use your other hand to trace up one finger while you breathe in and down while you breathe out. Do this for all five fingers.
• Hot chocolate breathing: Pretend you’re holding a warm mug of hot chocolate. Breathe in deeply to smell it, then breathe out slowly to cool it down.
• Belly breathing: Put your hands on your belly so your fingertips just touch. As you breathe in, feel your belly push your fingers apart. As you breathe out, let them come back together.

Change isn’t always easy — but if you focus on what you can control and take care of yourself along the way, you’ll come out stronger, braver and ready for whatever life challenges you with next.