Research statistics on stress and depression on college students

● More than 40 percent of college students have felt more than an average amount
of stress within the past 12 months.
● More than 80 percent of college students felt overwhelmed by all they had to do
in the past year and 45 percent have felt things were hopeless.
● Almost 73 percent of students living with a mental health condition experienced a
mental health crisis on campus
● In an American College Health Association report released in 2011, students
cited depression and anxiety as among the top impediments to academic
performance.
● 64 percent of young adults who are no longer in college are not attending college
because of a mental health related reason.(11) Depression, bipolar disorder and
posttraumatic stress disorder are the primary diagnoses of these young
adults.(12)
● 31 percent of college students have felt so depressed in the past year that it was
difficult to function and more than 50 percent have felt overwhelming anxiety,
making it hard to succeed academically.
● More than 45 percent of young adults who stopped attending college because of
mental health related reasons did not request accommodations.(14) 50 percent
of them did not access mental health services and supports either.( lack of effort
to do something, if they possibly tried and reaching out for help could have
stayed and finished)
● Concern of stigma is the number one reason students do not seek help(reason
why they don’t)
● Suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death on college campuses(do something
before dropping out or suicide)
● 31 million students have enrolled in college and left without receiving a degree.
● 60% of students who start a 4 year college graduated within 6 years.
● 29% students complete a 2 year degree within 3 years.

https://www.csc.edu/bit/resources/statistics/
https://www.greatschools.org/gk/articles/dropping-out-of-college-record-numbers/
https://nscresearchcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/NSC_Signature_Report_7.pdf
https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=40
https://www.gse.harvard.edu/sites/default/files//documents/Pathways_to_Prosper
ity_Feb2011-1.pdf
Tips to handle stress and minimize it

● Eat nutritious meals, healthy

● Avoid cigarettes

● Drink plenty of water

● Exercise, which helps decrease depression and anxiety and improve moods

● Get enough sleep. (Researchers believe that lack of sleep contributes to a high
rate of depression in college students).

● Avoid alcohol and other drugs

● Get help when you need it

● Blast some music and clean
● Learn to say no
● Need to prioritize
● No distractions
● Adding too much on your list can cause anxiety and stress so make it count
● Avoid procrastination
● Less coffee! Too much can make you sleepy since it makes you dehydrated
● Chew gum, can help with memory
● Organize yourself
● Self care!
● Spend time with family, friends, and loved ones

https://www.verywellmind.com/ways-to-calm-down-quickly-when-overwhelmed-3145197
https://www.verywellmind.com/stress-management-4157211
https://www.verywellmind.com/tips-to-reduce-stress-3145195
 Stress is inevitable. Right? It’s bound to happen. Those who are eager to strive
and who have goals they want to achieve, know it won’t be easy. Regardless what an
individual decides to do in their life, they will face obstacles and overwhelming tasks.
Some people struggle with it so much, they end up completely giving up and ending up
in a worst place long term. Stress from facing challenges or avoiding those obstacles is
not always preventable, although can be minimized. Doing simple things like sitting on a
cozy night next to the warm fire, hearing the whispering noise of the wood burning as
you study for an exam you might be stressing out can help your mind relax and be more
at ease. If you don’t have a place or the items to create a fire you can just purchase a
candle and dim the light to help you relax. There are many things you can do to help
minimize stress and help how to handle it well, but everyone is different. Meaning
certain things might work for others and others it might not.

Stacey.

Stacey has been working at McDonald’s since her senior year in high school.
She tried not having a job so she can focus in school, up until she wanted to start
buying herself new stuff and get to buy her own car. Stacey also thought that she
should get a job since it was time to start her life as an adult and learn how to handle
the responsibilities that comes with it. Stacey was excited to start her beautiful journey
of new adventures, meeting new people, growing the knowledge of her interest.

Stacey wasn’t going to college too far from her house so she was fortunate to be
able to live in her house with her parents. Stacey had to pay for her own college
because her parents had told her that it was a part of the responsibility of growing up
and needs to manage herself and not rely on anyone, including them. Stacey was fine
with that because she wanted to be independent and didn’t have a big bill to pay for
college since she got financial aid and scholarships. Until her phone bill came in. Then
her car payment with her insurance bill. Then she had to pay for her food since she
started eating out more during the time she was in college. Then along with the drive to
school she had spent more gas than she usually did. Stacey knew she would have to
pick up extra shifts then what she use to work so she can have enough money to pay all
that and hopefully have some money left over for her and to save. College wasn’t like
high school where she’d be assigned as an assignment that the teacher would grade or
collect the next time in class. College consisted of managing your time wisely since it
was work you needed to study on your own time. Stacey was always use to having so
much time left over as she didn’t have job until the time she was about to leave for
college.

This was a drastic change in her life because she was never put in a situation
where she had to use every minute of her time efficiently. She started drowning in
papers since she became exhausted from working long dreadful hours, and trying to
focus on all the papers with all the multiple pages of essays she had to type up. Her life
consisted of working, school, and barely any sleep. She began to stress eat and drink
loads of coffee every single day to keep her moving, but Stacey still felt like she was
drowning yet it still wasn’t enough. Her friends started begging her to go out because
she hadn’t hung out with them in a while. And her family began to miss her and wanted
to spend quality time with Stacey.

Stacey started getting headache that painkillers couldn’t get rid of, she noticed
she was starting to get some acne too. She started becoming more tired every single
day until one day Stacey snapped. She felt like she couldn’t do it all. Stacey was ready
to say “that’s it”, but she caught herself. She knew she had to push herself because she
saw the bigger picture. Celebrating the day of her graduation, getting to just cross the
finish line, knowing that she did it when she felt she couldn’t all by herself. It motivated
her. She knew the first thing she should do is organize herself. It was important to be
organized so she won’t forget any important things she had to make sure she
remembered to do. She also had to organize her schedule and things she had to do
throughout the week so she can use her time efficiently. She also had to learn to say
no. Not only to others when it comes to turning down tempting plans, but also to herself
when it comes on saving money like taking the train to school instead of her car and
saving money by not going out to eat too much so she won’t have to take extra shifts.
She began to feel more at ease. Whenever she would be studying on a new topic or for
a quiz/test, she would put on a face mask or do something for her self care. Stacey
even began to manage to build more energy and began exercising during her free time,
which she found to help her.

The time of her graduating was already around the corner and despite the
struggle the journey still was, she was more than happy to be able to say she finished it.
Stacey could now live up to work her dream job as a child advocate to help defend what
is the best for children who can’t speak up for themselves.

Jacob and Kyle.

Kylie grew up having everything. He came from a wealthy family and was
blessed to have pretty much anything he wanted. Kylie was popular at his high school
and did good in school. Jacob, on the other hand, had to work for everything he has and
made sure to do great in school to get scholarships and praying he’d get a full ride. Both
were excited to start out there freshman year in college. Both teens were very anxious
but excited to think that there was going to be parties they could go to, going out with
girls. They weren’t expecting college coming with a lot of responsibility and thought
they’d just show up to class and party afterwards. Jacob and kylie did not know that
they were soon going to be thrown with being adults with responsibilities. A lot of people
on shows and movies make college feel like it’s the best time in your life where you’re
only happy. However, it didn’t demonstrate the reality of the struggle you’ll face.

Both Jacob and Kylie thought living with each other wouldn’t be a problem. Both
got along great in the beginning being interested in the same things, like basketball,
football, parties. As days went by, both teens began to realize how college isn’t as a
breeze as they thought it would, neither would be living together. The realization of both
having to be committed to college and not partying hit them hard. Both had different
schedules so sometimes when they’d be in their room, one would be awake studying
late at night since his class started later on the next day while the other one would be
sleeping since he would have class in the morning. One day Jacob was with his
roommate and they got into a big argument on whether Jacob should have peace and
quiet since it was late and needed to sleep for his exams the next day. Kylie, however,
wanted to be able to study comfortably in his room since he also pays to live there, not
just Jacob.

One night, Jacob was trying to sleep because he had a big exam coming up, but
Kylie had a friend come over to study. Both began to get into a little argument on who
was in the right and who should let who do what since both pay to live in that dorm. This
began to hit Jacob with stress, causing him to become angry and mad at everyone.
Jacob couldn’t even focus no more and wasn’t able to do good in school since he
wasn’t getting the proper sleep. While Kyle was starting to fall behind in school by also
becoming stressed with catching up since whenever he would try to study, Jacob and
him would begin to argue.

The stress they had was starting to become more severe as it continued to build
by the smallest things. Like hearing people to chew, traffic, and having to clean. Jacob
being very stressed made Kyle very stressed because of the negative energy that was
going around them. They decided to sit down and talk about a solution. Both decide to
start communicating with one another and agreed on Kylie getting some nights where
he could study late at night, while the rest of the days Jacob could get a good night rest.
Both teens helped each other reduce their stress by going out to get a good workout in
by playing basketball or football in their free time. Both blasted their favorite music
together while they cleaned their room. Jacob and Kylie were able to get through the
year and ended up enjoying having each other as roommates and were able to stay on
track in school.
 It is very important to be able to reduce your stress as in can affect how well you
do academically and can possibly cause you to fall very behind where you won’t be able
to catch up to pass the class. According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation
and Development, the U.S. has the highest dropout rate in the industrial world, and 60%
of students who start a 4 year college graduated within 6 years and 29% students
complete a 2 year degree within 3 years. It is important to eat healthy, exercise,
organize yourself and use your time efficiently so you won’t have to fail classes that you
paid a lot of money for and waste your time by falling behind. When you become stress
and face something you don’t enjoy then learn to enjoy it. Whether it’s by putting on
face masks while studying or listening to music while studying, do what you have to to
get it done and not give up.