Mental illness can stem from biological factors, like genes or brain chemistry; life experiences, such as trauma or abuse; and/ or family history of mental health problems. Mental health awareness day just passed on October 10, 2017. This day provides the opportunity for stakeholders working on mental health issues to talk about their work, and what more needs to be done to make mental health awareness a reality for people worldwide.
(source: https://www.nami.org/Learn-More/Mental-Health-Conditions)
(https://www.nami.org/Learn-More/Mental-Health-By-the-Numbers)
“At the beginning of my second year of college I realized I was not happy with where I was in my life. A combination of my unhappiness and being away from home brought up a lot of anxiety. Since then I frequently struggle with anxiety when going into new situations even now that I’m in a happier place. Occasionally I even experience anxiety of panic attack with no apparent cause, which I believe is a result of those experiences. Although my anxiety has become a big part of my life, I am intentional about not allowing it to hold me back from beneficial experiences no matter how difficult that is.” -S, a female student at the University of Washington
The top mental illnesses that happen to students include: anxiety; depression; addiction; eating disorders; and suicide. One in four students have a diagnosable illness, 40% of which do not seek help, 80% feel overwhelmed by their responsibilities, and 50% have become so anxious that they struggle in school.
Below, is a small description and data to show how much mental illnesses are affecting students like me and you:
- Depression among college students comes in many forms. According the Association for University and College Counseling Center, 36.4% of college students reported they experienced some level of depression. Depression is a common but serious illness that leaves people feeling despondent, helpless, and completely detached from the world. The American Psychological Association (APA) notes that depression is the most common mental disorder.
- Low levels of stress and anxiety are typical a part of people’s lives, but when it starts to interfere more with your daily life, ability to function, and is causing an immense amount of fear, is when an anxiety disorder may occur in someone’s life. According to The Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA) reports that anxiety disorders affect 40 million adults over the age of 18, yet only one- third seek and receive treatment.
- Alcohol and drug use has become a commonplace on many college campuses throughout the U.S. About 25% of students who regularly drink reports problems tied to their drinking habits. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reports that 21.3% of young adults between 18 and 25 illicit drugs.
- Millions of college students- both women and men alike- develop eating disorders during their college years. The vast majority of these people and weight perceptions. Eating disorders are extreme behaviors, emotions, and attitudes that revolve around food and weight perceptions. According to the National Association of Anorexia and Associated Disorders, one person dies as a result of an eating disorder every 62 minutes.
- According to the Center for the Disease Control and Prevention, in 2011, there were around 40,000 suicides were reported in the U.S. making it one of the leading causes in the U.S. Over 1,000 of those suicides occur on college campuses. Suicide can be caused my feelings of guilt, hopelessness, and despair can build when students do not take steps to cope with stressors.
http://www.learnpsychology.org/mental-health/
I hope that people understand the severity of this topic. Many people are affected by mental illnesses and by all of society being aware that this is happening to 1 in 4 people, then may be they will understand how to see the signs and symptoms and educate generations about it. We need to be aware so that the ages do not keep getting lower, why the rates keep getting higher.
“College made it worse because I live alone and no one is there when I freak out. I would say being diagnosed helped me the most because at least then I know what is going on and can try to logistically talk myself it. Talking about it really helps. I didn’t think it would but the more I talk about it, the more comfortable I am about being this way.” -J, a female student at Central Washington University
You’re mind generates around 50,000 thoughts per day, 35 to 48 thoughts per minute. The flow of thinking filters between our thought, feeling, head, and hearts. Those thoughts help determine whether or not you feel happy or sad, or your character choices you are going to make during that day. Coming to college has been a great experience for me, but it has also come with its challenges. I love the new experiences and opportunities that have come my way to prepare me future endeavours. Since coming to college, one of the challenges I have faced is being diagnosed with generalized and social anxiety disorder. The number of thought that occur in the average person’s mind, seemed to be doubled in my mind. Generalized anxiety disorder is characterized as the persistent and excessive worry about a number of different things. Other people, along with myself may be overly concerned about money, health, family, work, and other issues. Social anxiety is the fear of social situations and negatively being judged or evaluated by other people. Personal experiences of judgement created the social anxiety that I live day to day with. This battle of anxiety has had its ups and down, but recently being diagnosed has helped me figure out how to handle myself when anxiety attacks occur or when I find myself overthinking everything. I am now able to understand that when in doubt, I can take a step back and evaluate how I can handle the situation presented in front of me. I have surrounded myself with a support system and will continue growing to understand myself. Even though I have anxiety, I will not let it hold me back from life’s experiences and my plans for the future.
Bruce Davis, Ph.D (https://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/3307916)
“Mental illness is hard for some to understand due to its effects that are not always visible from a physical standpoint. It can be a silent killer for those who feel along in their struggle. That is why is is so important that awareness has been raised and people are becoming more informed.” -C, a male student at Pierce College
Many people only know or have been educated about the topic of mental illness through the media. The media sometimes likes to glorify mental illness by making it seem not as severe as it really tends to be. Example of this may be from the Netflix original show 13 Reasons Why or the movie with Emily Osment, Cyberbully. Both of these movies glorify what it is like to have a mental illness. The reason I am laying out all of these statistics, facts, quotes, and commentary for you is not to just be glanced at, but it is to be taken very seriously because there is not ONE solution. ONE SIZE DOES NOT FIT ALL. Someone with the same mental illness might not even be the same because there is a wide spectrum of each. I hope that this article will help people become more aware and want to listen to the signs that they see around so that they may help others in the process.
Hotlines:
Suicide Hotline: 1-800-273-8255
Addiction Hotline: 877-226-3111
Eating Disorder Hotline: 844-228-2962
Self Harm Hotline: 877-455-0628
Depression Hotline: 888-640-5174
Sexual Assault Hotline: 800-656-4673
Domestic Abuse/ Violence Hotline: Call 800-799-7233