Students learn coping strategies at Mental Health Awareness Day
November 2, 2022
By Corbin Johnson, Staff Writer
Many say that college is a great time to find out what is your lifelong dream, but that has sometimes been an understatement. When young adults enter college, it can be hard to adjust due to new experiences, having new responsibilities, and growing pains. It is also nerve-wracking because this is the first time students will have to navigate their own physical and mental health without the help of their parents. As a result, students can develop mental illnesses or other physical illnesses as well.
College is a key developmental time for young adults, experts said. Without proper mental care, the stresses that come can lead to the onset of mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, and schizophrenia. Roughly 65-percent of mental health issues begin by age 20 and take a huge toll on students, according to data collected in a study by researchers at Boston University.
“Ever since the pandemic has begun, we have had a ton of new patients who have been dealing with these issues every day,” said Tyana Robertson, a developmental pediatrician who spoke at Xavier’s Mental Health Fair on Sept. 21 in the University Center.
“The numbers have increased since the pandemic due to many people terrified of catching the virus,” she said. “We hope to lower the numbers by giving the resources and tools that they need to get better,” she added.
The American Psychological Association noted that in the 2020-2021 school year, roughly two-thirds of college students identified as suffering from at least one mental health challenge.About half of college students believe the COVID-19 pandemic has affected their mental health in college. Anxiety was also the leading mental health challenge that college students said they faced during the pandemic.
“Depression and anxiety have led to many suicides across college students,” said Dr. Thomas Maestri, a clinical associate professor at Xavier. “Students who were dealing with peer pressure or issues in their social life were the ones likely to commit suicide,” he said. “We have noticed a 22-percent jump in suicide deaths this year in the country compared to 2013 and hope that we can reduce these numbers as quick as possible,” he added.
More students are seeking help to resolve their mental issues, the APA found, up 40-percent since the start of the pandemic. Traditionally, students coped by hiding the pain or becoming reclusive. Across the country, more schools are providing a variety of resources to respond to the uptick in demand. It is a start to destigmatize seeking support for mental health problems.
“Many students feel like people won’t understand what they are going through,” said Milad Chedid, a fourth-year pharmacy student. “I’ve had my own share of mental health issues, but I realized that I needed to talk to someone and after doing that it has really helped me be in a great position today,” he said. “I hope everyone takes these issues seriously because it is not something to joke around with, and needs to be dealt with immediately,” he added.
