The effects school has on mental health.

Written by… Dakotta Hargrave

Edited by… Sue Green 

Even though school is supposed to be a place to learn it can affect our mental health for the worse. The bottom line on student learning today is this:

"You can't teach if you're not addressing mental health," says Rene Myers, an intervention specialist in St. Paul, Minn. 

A study on the increase in mental health issues in a Detroit school.

 The school environment can cause anxiety to peak and someone's depression to go up. With bullying and peer pressure it can be tough to navigate your school life and not be scared of what will happen next. School can cause you to continuously over think about what others think of you, if they’re laughing at you, or looking at you.

Having the stress of school work on your shoulders can cause you to not have the motivation to do it, being to stressed to do any of it, or feel like you don't have the time to do anything else you need to in your personal life. With to many exams, homework, and grades it can lead to burnout. Having the stress of your parents expectations on how you should do academically can lead to again to anxiety on how you do and overthinking your own skills.

Going from an elementary school level of work and classes to a middle school level or even middle school to high school can be a bigger change and challenge than most think. For people with high anxiety, depression, and any other mental illness it can be a struggle to get used to a change in work and the amount of classes that are expected of us to take. With harder classes, making new friends, having a new environment, and a brand new schedule it can take a toll on you as a person with stress of trying to get and understand things. 

Bullying and the harassment from the kids around you can take a significant toll on your health. Being scared that you're a target for your school year can make you anxious to go to school and walk anywhere around your school building. Being so anxious that you’re looking around your shoulder and corner every minute can take a toll on not only your mental health but physical health, with looking around so often it can lead to headaches, migraines, and stomach aches.  

Online schooling can be a better option than in person. Doing online school, you have a lot of flexibility and can focus on yourself and other things while having time to do the school work needed to get done. With the flexibility you're able to take breaks when needed and not have to worry about a classroom of other kids needing breaks at the same time you do. It doesn't have the type of social pressure a normal classroom or school does since you're in a comfortable environment. You have more support and resources for support since there are online programs that provide access to mental health professionals.

Quote from Jaelynn Brown, a friend of ours who switched to online school,

“I was less stressed, my self esteem definitely went up cause I didn’t have such high expectations, way less anxiety, better time management with the flexibility, and did better on my mental health.”