The student health director at Washington University in St. Louis says that keeping lines of communication open is very important. Parents and teachers need to talk to the students before academic stress turns into a tragedy. Alan Glass, director of Student Health and Counseling at Washington University, thinks this issue could also be tied to 9/11. After those attacks, students became more globally aware. Thinking about the issues facing our country today can be very stressful, especially the current recession. What are your thoughts on this issue? How do you think it can be solved?
http://news-info.wustl.edu/tips/page/normal/4198.html
In recent years there has been many developments in the area of mental health. More people are being diagnosed with problems and more medications are being developed to help. Some people don't agree with every mental health problem and just say that drug companies are trying to get more money off of people's problems, but I believe in college there is a higher risk for mental health problems to develop.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't completely blame it on the 9/11 attacks although they have brought about a sense of globalization, but in today's society there is a huge pressure to succeed and ultimatley make money. Today, there are kids who try to go to college who aren't fit for it, just because it's so hard to get a job without a college education. Also with the difficulty finding jobs, kids are trying to be at the top of their class so that it'll be easier to be picked up by a company when they graduate, and if they don't succeed they get upset and depressed. There are so many pressures on college students to get good grades, be involved, and try to juggle a social life that it is no wonder they are developing mental problems from the stress.
There definitely is added stress in college upon leaving high school. Once you move to college, your life takes a complete 360. It can be very scary and add a lot of stress to an already stressed student trying to excel in school. If it truely become a mental issue, I think therapy should be the first method; find out what the doctor says about medication afterwards. As far as the 9/11 situation, I don't think has much of a correlation with the amount of stress college students have. Sure, we are more aware of global issues but I do not think it adds more stress to college students.
ReplyDeleteThe stress that mounts in the beginning of college life is inevitable. Students are leaving a place they made themselves comfortable for four years and are entering an entirely new realm of education, people, and activities. Leaving one's comfort zone is always a difficult concept on any scale, as little as hanging out with people you don't normally hang out with and maybe aren't very close with, to as large a deal as moving to a new country. College falls right in between. Maybe your high school prepped you well in the areas of studying for tests and getting involved with clubs, but there is so much responsbility, decision-making, time management, and independence that abusing these privileges may become a constant worry tugging at your heart and mind. The tests are harder. The note-taking no longer consists of the teacher passing around hand-outs that list everything you need to know for every quiz and test. It's up to you to get to class on time, take excellent notes, study hard, keep up with schoolwork, get a job, join clubs, make friends, and stay sane. All of this can be hard to balance, and may come as a shock to some students who came from smaller, more closely-knit high schools or backgrounds. I personally think that the stress can be managed by maintaining an optimistic outlook on life and keeping to a schedule -- not too tightly, of course, since then you'd just be adding more stress. But getting work done early, enjoying your time in clubs and activities, and mapping your goals and daily schedules on paper will minimize the anxiety and ensure that your college experience is much more enjoyable than stressful.
ReplyDeleteI believe that nowadays more and more people are being diagnosed with stress and mental health issues. So many people I know have atleast one medication for it. It's almost as if everyone has stress. While some can deal with it on their own, others cannot.
ReplyDeleteSome people need to get on medication while other's need to talk it out, play a sport or do extra cirricular activities.
I think college brings a lot of stress to students lifes. Students are paying so much to go to school so they don't want to mess up. Also, nowadays to get a good job you need a diploma so the pressure is on. I'm so happy that I can rely on my parents to make me feel better. Whenever I call, they are there to talk to me.
I think 9/11 doesn't add stress to the majority of college students but definately some. Students that were affected by it, definately. Maybe, they lost a parent and need to help with bills or something. But, for the most part, I think college alone is what stresses students out the most.
Sometimes, when I have alot to do I feel very stressed, but for the most part I'm loving school. Maybe more students just need to find something that will help get rid of the stress.
Today there is so much competition to come out on top in whatever you do just based on the fact that if you're not the best you're not going to be successful in life. with the current strains on our economy it makes people fearful of failure and what will happen if they are not the best of the best. its getting to a point today that even if you get your doctorate in something your still fighting for a job. theres so much stress on college students to adjust quickly and get good grades, it drive people insane to get below an a or b because they fear losing financial aid or scholarships. on top of that students think about the future that they are putting at stake. college is one of the most stressful times of a students life and both the funnest time of their lives.
ReplyDeleteThese numbers aren't too surprising to me. Depression is becoming the norm. Still, it's hard to discern what exactly is meant by "contemplating" suicide here. Does entertaining the idea (ie, "I'd rather be dead than write this paper, even though I'm going to write it anyway") constitute as contemplation or should a person actually be on the verge of committing suicide? I mean, sometimes we'd all rather be dead, but there can be a large margin between what we think and what we do. So in that case the statistic might be warped.
ReplyDeleteThat 9/11 contributed to this depression makes sense. It opened the eyes of young adults to the world around them. Seeing this world, the world that we're soon going to inherit, is frightening. College,a time spent as sort of a rite of passage into adulthood, will then be seen as intimidating. It is an institution which prepares you for a very real and sometimes very scary world.
All I can say is that this is a part of becoming an adult as well. Coming to terms with your world is how you live.
Not to be all gloom and doom, but I remember when I used to think adults were super heroes. Especially so now in college, I realize just how human adulthood really is, and it can be hard to swallow at times, but you just have to keep going.
I think we can all agree that the transition from high school to college was and is still a very stressful process. It is such a change in all aspects of our life. On top of all the changes of living, there is also the stress of a more rigorous course load. There are also pressures of meeting new people and altering your life style to the new college life.
ReplyDeleteI also have found that once you get to college, you experience a lot more of the actual real world, as opposed to the sheltered life style a lot of us had in high school. In a lot of classes, they teach you how to succeed in your profession by learning about how it pertains in everyday life. In the process you learn more about the events happening in the real world, and this can be a traumatic experience...
I believe that young people in society are faced with a lot of stress and pressure. The numbers that are revealed in the article though are very surprising to me. Young people not only face scrutiny with their school work but also could come from their household, friends, or sports teams. While many people can and do cope with the stress in their own ways there are many people that need help either professionally or just from a friend or family member. I feel like if people talked about their emotions and how they were feeling the numbers that were mentioned would be less. Many people hold in all their stress until they feel like there is no other option but suicide. I think that it is very sad that people think this way and that there should never be a circumstance where someone feels like they can’t confide in anyone else.
ReplyDeleteAs for the correlation with 9/11 and the increase in stress in students I don’t know if I can agree with this completely. Yes, without a doubt there were a lot of people who were affected by the actions of that day and it did cause a lot of stress for a lot of people but I think currently it doesn’t affect people that dramatically unless you had some direct connection or loss. I do think however though that current events including the recession also put pressure and stress on a lot more people especially students who are currently in college because they are worrying about their job opportunities they will have when they graduate and how they will be able to pay off all their loans. I know that is something I think about when I hear about the current situation that the Unites States economy is in.
When I honestly read the statistics I wasn’t surprised, often many individuals today are diagnosed with depression. Sometimes I feel doctors simply write out prescriptions to make money, for most people do not need to be on medication. I am not saying all; however most individuals’ troubles have a simpler solution than medication. If one feels depressed exercising is a nice option, along with healthier eating habits, and scheduling “me” time just to take a few breaths.
ReplyDeleteCollege is extremely stressful, for one has to adjust to a completely new environment. Some individuals can handle the pressure, while others crumble beneath it. People’s true characters shine through, for no longer are parents, teachers, and best friends from home there to hold one’s hand. It is almost like a mother bird teaching her baby to fly for the first time, she drops her child into the air and hopes it will spread its wings and fly. Although I do not think attending college is quite as dramatic as the image I just presented, however, for some it seems like it because they are not taking advantage of the opportunities presented. Help and guidance is available, we just have to take that initial move.
We must find and maintain balance, for it is the key to a healthy less stressful life style. There are plenty of books out there that stress this concept as well, such as Don’t Stress the Small Stuff- and it’s all small stuff by Richard Carlson. Even the famous play Our Town, by Thornton Wilder, with the theme of “carpe diem” encourages human beings to take advantage of every moment and cease the worry.
Although the current recession may be causing panic to college students, especially with tuition on the rise, all must remember that they are not alone. Many people face similar struggles every day, it is how we cope with those struggles that shape and model our character.
I believe that college students are under a tremendous amount of stress. Personally, I was never this stress about academics in high school. There is the pressure of scholarships and tuition. It is possible that the diagnosis of depression is being deemed too loosely.
ReplyDeleteI believe that number of kids who comtemplate suicide is outrageous. There is a difference between comtemplating it, and genuinely considering it.
World issues can add to stress. To realize that there is more to stress about then personal issues, but global ones as well.