Mental health is something many students struggle with daily. It can be caused by anything, but one of the biggest factors is school. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, one in five adolescents has a mental, emotional, or behavioral disorder, but many do not receive the help they need.
“I think mental health is a big issue,” Debra Woofter, counselor, said. “I think schools see it a lot because that’s where students spend the majority of their time.”
Woofter explained that stress is a normal part of life, but too much of it can cause students to shut down and become overwhelmed.
“I wasn’t not ready to push myself, but I didn’t know how to not push too hard,” Quorynn Harris, 10, said. “So it was definitely that aftershock from trying new things. I’m never going to grow if I don’t try harder classes, but sometimes there are growing pains.”
Harris explained how she wished she had received more preparation for honors and AP classes. She had always been on the cusp of being in gifted classes, but she never fully got there aside from being a year ahead in math. This year, she decided to challenge herself and took honors classes and AP European history – the only AP class available for sophomores.
“I jumped off the cliff of AP, and I’m feeling that aftershock,” Harris said. “It’s like, I’m trying to come up for a breath, but if I get a breath, then it makes it harder to breathe when I go back down. So if I’m trying to take a break for myself, then my grades go down because I can’t [take a break] without my grades fluctuating, and then there’s somebody pushing my head back under the water. So genuinely, that breath hurts me more than helps me. There’s always that pressure coming up top, whether it be my parents, whether it be myself, or whether it be my grades, that’s constantly pushing me back into the water. So it’s more gasps of air than, oh, I’m going to come float above the water for a little bit. I don’t have that luxury anymore.”
Many students struggle with academic pressure from the people in their lives and from themselves. It’s a good thing to be encouraged academically, but feeling too much pressure can cause students to feel anxious.
“I do receive academic pressure, and it sucks because I put it on myself too. I don’t think it’s always intentional coming from my parents, but it does happen, and it causes more anxiety than I already have for school because I’m more afraid of failing than necessary,” Skylenn Vargas, 10, said.
It’s important to make sure students feel supported and know they can get help if they are struggling. Receiving help now can prevent them from developing deeper struggles in the future.
