How should students improve their mental health?
High school is difficult and a lot of students struggle with mental health issues as a result. In fact, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), one in five teens are experiencing a mental health condition, worldwide. And these issues can become chronic (meaning they follow you into adulthood); 50% of chronic mental illnesses develop at age 14. The mental health of students, especially in terms of academic stress and its impact has become a serious issue among researchers and policymakers because of increasing cases of depression in students across the globe. Approximately 60% of the high school students in India experience academic stress.
While that’s a pretty doom-and-gloom way to start, there are two bits of good news here. One, if you’re experiencing a mental health issue, you are not alone and, two, you can do something about it.
When signs of mental health issues start showing up in you- mood swings, anxiety, feeling withdrawn, eating issues- it can feel scary. Major life changes, academic pressure, relationship problems, family issues and money can all be at the root of mental health issues and can also make your symptoms feel more daunting.
So daunting, that many tend to use unhealthy coping behaviors to try and make it all go away. Some teens ignore it, some turn to substance abuse, and others act out or harm themselves. None of these is long-term, healthy ways to be your happiest self.
The following tips will help you stay on top of your game mentally and help you develop healthy habits that can make all the difference right now, in college, in your career, and in your personal life as an adult. Some may not work for you and that’s okay; give them a chance and adopt the ones that do make a difference.
Don’t ignore your sleep. Sleep is huge. Not getting enough sleep or not getting good sleep has been linked to all sorts of mental health issues in teens by a bunch of scientific studies. Most of those studies came to the same conclusion: if you’re of high school age, you need more sleep (and more quality sleep) than an adult does. Most of these studies say you need at least eight hours of shuteye during the school week and over nine hours on the weekends. For some, that’s easier said than done. It always seems like as soon as your head hits the pillow, you’re replaying everything that happened during the day or being flooded with anxious feelings about tomorrow. Here are some ways to stop that from happening and improve the quality of your sleep.
Develop a Sleeping Routine. Going to sleep at the same time every night and waking up at the same time every day are important. When you do this, your brain will know to start releasing the chemicals that make you sleepy at the right times every night and give you a dose of happy wake-up chemicals every morning.
Limit your Screen Time. It takes a ton of willpower, but turning your phone, tablet, computer, and TV off at least 30 minutes before you go to bed can make an enormous difference in how fast you fall asleep and how well you sleep. Try setting an alarm for 30 minutes before bed; when it rings, you turn off all screens and focus on something else instead (listening to music, reading, meditating, yoga, showering, etc).
Limit Caffeine. Caffeine might be your instant happy juice, but it might also be keeping you awake at night. Try giving yourself a cut-off time for your last caffeine fix of the day which is several hours before you head off to bed.
Make a List for Tomorrow. If you find yourself lying in bed at night worrying about what tomorrow holds, first ask yourself if there’s anything you can do about it right now. If there isn’t, set it aside mentally and know that you’ll handle it when it comes up tomorrow. It can also be helpful to make a to-do list for the next day, which appears to help our brains let go of the anxiety about impending events.
Follow these steps and lead yourself towards a happier and healthier future!
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Nakul Patwa