On the front page of the New York Times today, I see this: “Record Level of Stress Found in College Freshmen.” Wow, NO KIDDING. This is news? I suppose for our parents’ generation this might come as a shock. I can’t count the number of conversations I’ve had with my mom that went a little like this:
Mom: “Oh, I’m so exhausted. I didn’t get a nap today.”
Me: “I NEVER get a nap.”
Mom: “Well I worked today and then I had to go see your sister and go to the store!”
Me: “I’ve been studying since three days ago. I win.”
I can’t even imagine a time in my life when I’ll get off of work and simply have errands to do. This sounds like a luxury somewhere in the ranks of daily massages and a bottomless cache of chocolate. For students, the work never stops. Only when you decide to occasionally treat yourself to food and/or sleep does your to-do list take a back seat.
So, the New York Times ran the story summarizing an annual survey of college freshmen and their mental health levels coming into college. Lo and behold, freshman girls continually rate their emotional health lower and report having felt more overwhelmed their senior year of high school than did freshman guys.
The stress starts in high school. It only gets worse after your freshman year of college (I can vouch for that – I’d love to get back my high school stress levels). I’d be interested in seeing the results of the same survey given to the same group when they’re upperclassmen in college – I can guarantee the stress is continual.
So, what do we do? Is this a product of the current economy or a trend that isn’t going to stop? I recently (as in last week sometime) watched this video in a class of mine:
As the video shows, we have more to do than hours in the day – which seems about right. It’s more than the dismal economy and the pressure to work hard to find that elusive “secure” job in our competition-driven nation. We are in an age of technology, of multitasking, of cleaning up the previous generation’s messes.
Clearly, the mental health of college students (and sadly, younger high school students) is at risk because of the high demands of our culture. Is there a way to change this? Require a meditation class? Have yearly mental health check-ups, just like an annual physical exam is necessary for physical well-being?
Just a thought – what do you think?