School can be a wonderful experience for kids, with lots of learning and social life and getting to experience new things. It can also be the most stressful thing a kid has to go through. School can cause early depression for young adults and anxiety, and it gives younger kids a taste of what stress can feel like. This topic has always been talked about in all different grade levels because of what students truly go through. High school is an extremely hard stage for young adults because you feel like you need to have your life put together in a straight line, not realizing how many turns and curves and loops you go through in the process.
Students take extra classes, and honors and AP classes, just to look good on paper to get into a decent college if they want to do something with their life. Worrying deeply about how their SAT scores are going to be, and worrying they will not graduate on time if they lack credits, many students here at Doherty have test anxiety. Some teachers do not believe it is real, but it is fully real. It affects students’ grades tremendously. Student athletes are a whole other problem; they are juggling a tight schedule while still getting good grades and studying late at night after their practice.
I interviewed different students on what their perspective is with their everyday school life with their mental health. I asked Johanna Subia about how she deals with keeping up with sports and grades. “It was a struggle keeping up with it especially the first year because I did three sports, so I was in a sport all year round. Overall, my mental health is good, but it is just so stressful dealing with everything, and never getting a true break.” I also interviewed a student who is in all AP and honors classes, and part of ROTC of our school. Amberlynn McMillen said. “ I think they can have positive and negatives impact because it is a lot of pressure and to keep up with it all the time and cause me a lot of stress, but they do bring me joy just comes with a slight cost. “
I interviewed a senior about how he dealt with 12 years of school and what his mental health has been like. Aden Mendoza said, “Let’s start with the depression it brings me, with having school every day and having extra activities, I just get mentally exhausted. And struggle to find time for most things and myself. On top of that you must try and fit in with some people or else you’ll get socially looked down upon gets to point where you worry too much.”
As you see it’s very hard to deal with school based on all the responses I got from different types of students. With different goals, and expectations, having a different lifestyle and yet all of them have one thing in common. Struggling with their mental health, and what school has bought them with anxiety, depression, stress, social anxiety, etc. If you or anybody you know are struggling with suicidal thoughts, or need to talk to someone our counselor is always open to talk, if you want to be anonymous call 1-877-542-7233.
