College Students and Depression
Dealing with mental health during college can be challenging for anyone. It can affect your quality of life, decrease your physical health, and make studying harder.
Depression
"The most frequently cited causes of depression among students who reported they had experienced depression since coming to college were grade problems (53%), loneliness (51%), money problems (50%), relationship problems with girlfriend/boyfriend (48%)" among other contributing factors (Furr et al. 2001).
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The Stigma
"Many students are not diagnosed and do not receive needed treatment because they do not seek care for mental health concerns. Studies indicate that 50-80% of college students who struggled with mental health issues in the past year did not seek treatment. (Oswalt et al. 2020)"
Why are college students at risk?
College is full of new experiences. It could be your first time living away from home, finding your routine, getting used to life on campus, a job to cover additional expenses, meeting new people and let's not forget about finals...
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With all of the new added pressures and responsibilities it can be difficult to navigate and become overwhelming.
Signs to look out for
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Feelings of sadness or hopelessness
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Loss of interest or pleasure in normal activities
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Tiredness, lack of energy
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Insomnia and sleep disturbances
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Changes in appetite, either increased or reduced
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Irritability, angry outbursts
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Negative changes in relationships and/or academic performance
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Frequent or reoccurring thoughts of death, suicidal thoughts, sucide attempts or physical self harm
The Facts
"An estimated 26% of Americans ages 18
and older live with a diagnosable mental health disorder in a
given year.6 Half of all serious adult psychiatric
illnesses, including major depression, anxiety
disorders, and substance abuse, start by age 14 with
75% presenting by age 25."
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"Depression and anxiety are the two most common
MH issues in college. Anxiety has surpassed depression as the most common MH concern,
affecting 38% to 55% of students."
"Mental health conditions in college
students can negatively affect quality of life, decrease
physical health, and wellbeing, and impede academic
success. For example, depression and anxiety are
associated with decreased GPA, acute infectious
illness, increased alcohol consumption, smoking,
increased self-injurious behaviors, withdrawal from
college, suicidal ideation, and suicide. College
students with chronic insomnia report increased
depression, anxiety, stress, and stimulant use
compared to those without chronic insomnia as
well as the increased potential for emotional eating"
Getting Help
There are many ways to help you or a loved one cope with depression.
Here are a few ways you can start:
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reach out to family and friends
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do things that make you feel good
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exercise & eat healthy
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seek counseling from a professional
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Check out some of our other pages for other ways to help in reducing the feelings and symptoms of depression.
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SAMHSA National Help line Available 24/7 - 1 (800) 662 - HELP (4357)
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National Suicide Prevention Lifeline Available 24/7 - 1 (800) 273 - 8255
https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/
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"Exercise is a well documented to have health benefits for physical and mental health,.., showing positive effects on depression, and promising preliminary evidence for efficacy in anxiety, eating disorders and substance abuse. (Oswat et al. 2020)
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