As the new school year begins, college students with crammed schedules and tight deadlines often face creeping mental health issues. With a new year comes new anxieties, and it’s easy to be bogged down by first-day jitters. As you settle into your college dorm or begin to watch as your homework piles up, it’s important to take care of yourself.
In a college or even high school environment, checking in on your mental health is incredibly challenging, especially with all the school-related distractions. In college, the settling-in period is cut extremely short by introductory assignments and power lectures, so often students don’t even have time to catch their own breath.
On top of assignments, all the social events — football games, mixers, orientations, student organizations — can sometimes take up all of your time, leaving you without a moment to check-in.
According to a 2024 Higher Minds study, the mental health of collegiate students is actually improving from previous years. During the 2022-2023 academic year, student mental health symptoms of depression and anxiety were at an all-time high. With a decreasing trend of mental health issues in college-aged students in the academic year 2023-2024, there is hope that the prevalence of mental health issues will continue to decrease.
However, despite the marginal improvement, student rates of reported mental health issues have doubled overall in the last decade, according to the American Psychological Association (APA). From the Covid-19 pandemic to increased awareness of social justice issues to social media, students today are challenged by far more than just their assignments.
According to the APA, this had led many schools to expand counseling programs and student access to mental health resources. At a majority of universities, students have access to school accommodations for both mental and physical disabilities to help them navigate their time and assignments. Though this certainly helps, is it enough?
Social pressure, relationships, schoolwork, finances, lack of sleep and substance use are just a few causes of rising mental health concerns, according to Verywell Mind. Despite schools increasing access to mental health resources, many students still face hurdles while trying to receive accommodations. Additionally, solutions are limited for students who do not want to work directly with their university to receive them.
So what can we do? The decrease in mental health issues from past years is certainly promising and suggests that universities are making positive changes to support their students. But more can still be done. Student mental health isn’t just an academic issue, and it can’t be fixed simply by universities themselves. This is a cultural issue entirely reflected by the overwhelming rise in the prevalence of mental health issues across all demographics for the last decade.
Where Baby Boomers might blame cell phones, and Gen-Zers might blame mental health issues finally being acknowledged, the rise in mental health issues requires a solution. There isn’t one thing that can solve all your problems, but there are things you can certainly do to support yourself during your transition this semester.
Don’t be afraid to advocate for your needs, even if that means turning in an assignment late. If it’s between a breakdown or a chemistry lab, stay home and take the day off. Your well-being will always be far more important than any lecture or assignment. Limit your screen time, go outside, talk to your friends or even talk to yourself if it helps. College is hard: it’s lonely, isolating, crazy, depressing, exhilarating, busy and intellectually challenging all in one. That’s a lot for any young adult, really any human, to take on, so be kind to yourself, and remember, your health comes first.
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