Understanding student mental health: Challenges and solutions

Across high school and college campuses in America, students are facing a growing mental health crisis, impacting their well-being and academic success.

Seventy percent of students starting college say they experienced a notable difference in their mental health with new stressors like increased academic expectations, navigating interpersonal relationships, and the threat of sexual assault on campuses. In the past year, high school students have experienced worsening mental health, like feelings of sadness and hopelessness.

This disrupts their daily lives, affects decision-making, and compromises academic performance.

Learn more about the mental health challenges impacting American students, and how you can be a useful advocate to improve the environment and conditions contributing to the problem.

Top mental health challenges of college students

In a 2022 survey of U.S. college students, over 50% reported that their mental health worsened during their time in college, including 58% of LGBTQ+ students. Researchers say that the majority of lifetime mental health conditions start in the early 20s age group, which makes college students particularly vulnerable. 

Here are some of the major mental health illnesses that college students suffer from and their causes. 

Anxiety 

Anxiety is the top mental health condition that students on college campuses suffer from. Anxiety can affect behaviors and personal, work, and school relationships. A 2022 survey revealed that 33% of students say an anxiety condition has hindered their class performance. Studies show that 70% of students with learning disabilities have more anxiety. 

Depression

Depression affects a person’s thoughts, feelings, and behaviors and is a common issue in college. A number of internal or external factors can cause depression, like circumstances at home, financial stresses, or problems in relationships. In a survey of college students across 133 different campuses, 44% reported depression symptoms.

Trauma

Trauma includes Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) which manifests when a person experiences a traumatic event. Sexual assault and discrimination are a big issue on college campuses in America contributing to trauma. College students diagnosed with PTSD more than doubled from 2017 to 2022.

Eating disorders

Eating disorders are common among women on college campuses. They include bulimia, anorexia, pica, and binge eating. Eating disorders cause depressive episodes, unhealthy eating habits, and obsessive thoughts about body image. According to research from five different studies of college students, eating disorders for women increased from nearly 32% in 2018 to nearly 52% in 2021.

The impact of poor mental health on college students

These mental health conditions all impact students in a variety of ways. Here are some of the academic and social ramifications from these challenges. 

Increase in college drop out rates

Academic pressures, financial obligations at home, and declining physical health can all lead to students considering or deciding to drop out of college. Thoughts about dropping out are more prevalent among Hispanic and Black students, and 53% of Hispanic and Black students cite emotional stress as the top reason for stopping their coursework.

Declining academic performance

There is a strong link between mental health disorders and academic performance. Studies show that high levels of stress are associated with lower academic performance. Adapting to higher education institutions and their academic demands can be extremely stressful for students. 

Competitive colleges, for example, ask students to complete complex tasks such as high-level research and writing dissertations. This involves dedicating long hours to studying, researching, writing, and receiving feedback from professors. Over 50% of college students say that stress from academic pressure has resulted in burnout.

Substance abuse

College students use substances, like alcohol, marijuana, and opiates, to cope with a high pressure academic environment. Only 1% of students have been diagnosed with substance abuse disorder, while 45% of students reported seeking professional help for using substances. Substance abuse can disrupt educational progress and cause problems in a student’s daily routine, work, and relationships.

Mental health challenges of high school students

High school students experience rising mental health problems, as well. According to a survey, 70% of teenagers said they worry about the mental health of their peers. The mental health conditions these students suffer from are diverse and varied. 

Sadness and hopelessness

According to data from 2023, 40% of high school students reported feelings of persistent sadness and hopelessness. The gender disparity is significant, with 53% of female students experiencing extreme episodes of sadness and loneliness, while only 28% of male students report it. Academic pressures, stress about school shootings, lack of belonging, and bullying all contribute to these feelings.

Suicidal thoughts

Suicidal ideation is another troubling concern. Twenty percent of high school students have contemplated suicide, while 9% of students have made at least one attempt. About 16% of students say bullying causes suicidal thoughts, and an estimated 160,000 students miss school daily due to fears of bullying. This includes cyberbullying which involves social media and online harassment.

Stress

Stress is common among high school students, with 75% of high schoolers reporting feeling stressed “often or always” by school work. Many high school students also report the college admissions process and worry about not getting into their college of choice as another major cause of stress. 

The impact of poor mental health on high school students

Now let’s turn to see the implications of poor mental health on the daily life of high school students.

Poor academic performance

High numbers of high school students report feeling stressed about bad grades and taking tests. This academic-related stress in turn has a negative impact on academic performance. This can ultimately affect whether students get into college or graduate high school.

Risky sexual behaviors

Poor mental health also results in students resorting to unsafe sexual habits. This leads to issues of sexually transmitted infections and diseases (STIs and STDs), unwanted pregnancies, and non consensual sex. In a 2023 survey, 48% of high school students reported they had unprotected sex, while 9% reported that they were coerced into having sex. 

Violence

Poor mental health also increases violent behaviors, with homicide as the third leading cause of death among 10-24 year old Americans. Youth violence causes physical injuries, increases medical bills, decreases property value, and affects school attendance leading to issues of chronic absenteeism.

Approaches to addressing student mental health

Psychologists, policymakers, and advocates propose a range of solutions that can help students with mental health issues. These call for institutions, school leaders, and the community to collaborate and push for mental health reform and enhance services for students. 

School-based approaches

Psychologists urge schools to introduce policies that tackle student mental health, including:

• Educate students on mental health disorders including eating disorders
• Incorporate mental health-friendly practices in teaching and activities that normalize mental health and take away shame and embarrassment of a diagnosis
• Practice mindfulness activities as individuals and groups
• Establish a central student health center to offer mental health counseling
• Foster Multi-tiered Systems of Support Models (MTSS) which offers holistic support to students from mental health to academic help

Enhance mental health services for college students

Researchers emphasize the need to support the mental health of college students as they come from all sorts of racial, economic, and cultural backgrounds. International students make up almost 6% of the total student body in American colleges and about 31% of them reported experiencing discrimination during their time at college. 

A diverse student body means that students have disparate life experiences, identities, and gender preferences. As a result, colleges should prioritize their Diversity, Inclusion, Equity, and Belonging (DEIB) goals to support students with different mental health needs. Identity-based programs and cultural based centers mitigate the impact of discrimination.

Grassroots advocacy 

Advocacy is always a powerful tool to drive change in society and an effective way to push legislators to support reform.

The American Psychologists Association (APA) advocates for student mental health to get the attention of legislators. A successful example of this was at the 2021 Education Advocacy Summit hosted by the APA. This resulted in the passing of the Comprehensive Mental Health in Schools Pilot Program by Congress. The Act would offer low-income students a holistic approach to mental well-being. It would also increase funding to train teachers to integrate trauma-informed teaching practices into their lessons.

Petitions

Anyone can use petitions to advocate for improvements in student mental health. Here are some petitions calling for student mental health support on Change.org:

Granting student mental health days

This 2023 petition highlights how stressful school can get with exams, unpleasant social interactions, and the constant pressure of college admissions. It calls to introduce mental health holidays so students can recharge and avoid burnout. This petition currently has over 950 signatures.

Starting grief support groups

This petition advocates for colleges to establish grief support groups to help students dealing with the loss of a loved one. Started in 2023, this petition specifically focuses on starting a grief support group in Bowling Green State University (BGSU) in Ohio. This will provide emotional support to students and help them focus on school. 

What’s next for student mental health?

The student mental health problem is clear, and it’s important to keep advocating for better services and facilities. Support groups, mental health education, easy access to mental health counselors, and integrating mindfulness activities will alleviate symptoms of stress, anxiety, and other mental health disorders.

If you feel strongly about student mental health, petitions are a useful way to raise awareness on a certain issue and get support for it. Start your petition today.