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Bobby Wells – Mental Health During COVID-19

  • June 8th, 2021

Our body as some may say “is a temple.” It’s very fragile and can be broken very easily. Physically, our body may appear broken if we have a broken limb and are required to be in a cast. However, what about mentally? While not as easy to detect, we can be broken mentally as well, in the form of mental illnesses. Disorders such as anxiety, depression, PTSD, etc. are all forms of mental illness that plague millions of people around the world. While not seen on the outside, mental illnesses can cause severe damage to people, making them the same if not even worse than a physical breaking.

In prior years, mental illness amongst students did not receive much attention. Why would it? Students only have to worry about going to school and completing work. However, this idea is completely wrong as we are learning now. Students for many years have been struggling with mental illnesses, specifically anxiety and depression. Recently, anxiety and depression levels amongst students have skyrocketed because of COVID-19; Changwon Son, a medical professional, argues, “Student mental health in higher education has been an increasing concern. The COVID-19 pandemic situation has brought this vulnerable population into renewed focus” (Son). COVID-19, as many of us know, is a new plague that has affected our lifestyles drastically and unfortunately killed many people. When COVID-19 began, no one knew what to expect or what was going to ensue in the months to follow. We were told to camp out within our homes and wait for this whole thing to blow over. Now, 12 months later we are still facing similar situations that we faced the year prior. There has been some upside within these past 12 months, such as the discovery of a vaccine to COVID-19. However, there have also been many monumental downsides within these past 12 months. One of these downsides is the effect COVID-19 has had on students’ mental health. Students, whether realizing it or not, have been impacted severely by COVID-19. They, along with their teachers, have been having to navigate territory that has never been navigated through before. This, along with many other factors discussed later in this paper, has caused a severe increase in poorer mental health within students. Evan Thompson proves this drastic impact best within his article when he says, “according to a survey by Active Minds in April, 91% of the 2,086 college students surveyed reported that COVID-19 gave them more stress and anxiety. Meanwhile, 81% said the pandemic caused feelings of disappointment and sadness” (Thompson). The ongoing struggles with COVID-19 have had an immeasurable impact on our lives in many ways, but perhaps one of its most profound impacts has been its effects on students’ mental health across the country.

When COVID-19 first entered the United States, people didn’t know what to think or how to act. News outlets and professionals kept contradicting each other, causing a lot of confusion within society. Nonetheless, as cases began to rise around the country, many states tried to stay proactive and began shutting down. These forced shutdowns not only caused businesses to shut down but also caused schools to shut down. This caused a lot of uncertainty and chaos within society as no one knew how long businesses and schools would be shut down for or how this whole thing would pan out. Furthermore, to make matters even worse, schools began transitioning to online learning via Zoom or an alternate online platform. Thus, causing teachers and students to quickly scramble so they wouldn’t miss out on important curriculum. This unsureness within society and having to transition to online learning has had a considerable impact on students across the country. This alone, as many doctors and researchers said, would be more than enough to cause an increase in negative mental illness. As the Center for Disease Control puts it, “Public health actions, such as social distancing, are necessary to reduce the spread of COVID-19, but they can make us feel isolated and lonely and can increase stress and anxiety,” highlighting the immediate impact COVID-19 has had on students (“Mental Health”). As if this wasn’t enough, COVID-19 has also impacted students in far more ways, causing the depression and anxiety levels in students to be at an all-time high.

As stated above, the depression rates amongst students are at an all-time high, and COVID-19 is to blame for this. When COVID first started, many of us only expected it to last for a few short months rather than a full year. Now, all this time elapsed without normalcy since the first shutdown has caused depression rates amongst students to increase for many reasons. First and foremost, the transition to online school has caused depression rates in students to increase. Researchers suggest this is due to students being separated from each other and being unable to interact on a daily basis as they were used to (Wilson). Changwon Son’s research also supports this increase in depression rates because of COVID as she says, “Furthermore, with the exception of high-burnout categories, depression levels among students, reported in several recent studies [33-35], have varied between 29% and 38%, which may suggest an uptick in pandemic-related depressive symptoms among college students” (Son).

Another way COVID has caused depression amongst students is through the cancellation of many events. Many high schoolers were unable to have their prom and other dances due to COVID-19. Additionally, many high school student athletes were unable to play in their final seasons because of COVID-19. Thus, causing many students to miss out on important and memorable moments within their lives. College students have also had many cancellations in events because of COVID. Many club and intramural organizations have been cancelled because of COVID. Furthermore, many events such as tailgating for football games have been cancelled in order to adhere to the social distancing guidelines. Altogether, the cancellations of all these events have caused students depression rates to jump dramatically. Son further proves depression rates amongst students have jumped because of COVID as she suggests within her study that 86% of people (167/195) have elevated depression levels due to decreased social interactions because of social distancing (Son).  In all, the transition to online school and the cancellation of many events due to COVID has caused depression rates amongst students to skyrocket.

COVID’s significant impact on students’ mental health can also be recognized through the surge in anxiety amongst students. Before COVID started, anxiety in students was quite normal. Why wouldn’t it be? Researchers suggest that students felt the most anxious when they felt pressured with homework, being overwhelmed with schoolwork, or having to get an important project in within a specific time period (Son). However, COVID has now taken all these previous anxieties students were facing, elevated them, and added new ones. For example, now while having to worry about completing one’s schoolwork, students also have to worry about surviving a global pandemic. In relation to this, students are also having to worry about their family’s health along with their friends’ health. Additionally, students are also having to face uncertainty left and right, adding more factors causing them to be more anxious. Evan Thompson uses a real-world example within his article to detail this newly added uncertainty and stress related to COVID as he says, “Davis, a 27-year-old Navy veteran who studies applied psychology at Oregon Tech’s Portland-Metro campus, hates being on lockdown. He gets stressed and anxious thinking about when the pandemic will end” (Thompson).

As if all this wasn’t enough, students also have to deal with the elements of school being online. This, like the other factors, has caused students to be more anxious as many students feel like completing schoolwork via online is harder as students may feel “sluggish and unfocused” (Thompson). Changwon Son’s research further supports how COVID has negatively impacted the anxiety levels of students as she adds, “Of the 195 students, 138 (71%) indicated increased stress and anxiety due to the COVID-19 outbreak” (Son). In addition to this, Son’s research also showed that 82% of the surveyed population showed an increased concern about academic performance as a result of COVID-19 (Son). COVID-19 has had a detrimental impact on the anxiety levels of students and will continue to do so if procedures aren’t laid out to help students.

On the contrary, some may argue that students’ anxiety and depression levels are ascending because of other social factors. These factors include but aren’t limited to the stress that comes with living in a global pandemic along with the prolonged isolation. Furthermore, others argue that by going to school online, students’ anxiety levels should be lower as they are minimizing their chance to get COVID. Likewise, arguments suggesting that students can build and have the same camaraderie via Zoom as they did pre-COVID have been made, also, suggesting that students’ anxiety and depression levels shouldn’t be as high as they are. I, as stated above, disagree with both of these statements. As a student, I find both of these arguments to be wrong and misleading. I don’t have the same enjoyment talking and seeing my friends on Zoom. I’d much rather see them in person and talk face-to-face. So, COVID preventing this from happening makes me depressed and anxious.

Overall, COVID-19 has had a significant impact on the mental well-being of students around the country. From the drastic measures schools took to adhere to governmental guidelines when COVID began, to all-time high levels of depression and anxiety amongst students, COVID-19 has done considerable damage. While we can keep talking about how detrimental COVID-19 has been on students’ mental states, we need to start taking action to address the issue. Oliver Wilson says it best as he writes, “a significant decline in PA and mental health among college students occurred under COVID-19 circumstances, and PA did not appear to protect against deterioration in mental health. Proactive and innovative policies, programs, and practices to promote student health and well-being must be explored immediately” (Wilson). If we don’t act now, more students will have their mental states compromised by COVID-19. We must implement counselors and programs within schools that work with students to regain their mental health. While we don’t know what waits for us in the future, we do know what waits for us now, and we need to act now before it is too late!

“Mental Health and Coping During COVID-19.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/managing-stress-anxiety.html.

Pedrelli, Paola, et al. “College Students: Mental Health Problems and Treatment Considerations.” Academic Psychiatric: The Journal of the American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training and the Association for Academic Psychiatry, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Oct. 2015, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4527955/.

Son, Changwon, et al. “Effects of COVID-19 on College Students’ Mental Health in the United States: Interview Survey Study.” Journal of Medical Internet Research, JMIR Publications, 3 Sept. 2020, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7473764/.

Thompson, Evan. “How COVID-19 Has Impacted Student Mental Health.” TheBestSchools.org, Thebestschools.org, 23 Oct. 2020, thebestschools.org/magazine/covid-19-impact-student-mental-health/.

Wilson, Oliver W. A., et al. “The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on US College Students’ Physical Activity and Mental Health.” Journal of Physical Activity & Health, vol. 18, no. 3, Mar. 2021, pp. 272–278. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx? direct=true&db=s3h&AN=149084550&site=eds-live&scope=site.

Categories: Uncategorized

Bobby Wells – Mental Health During COVID-19

  • June 8th, 2021

Our body as some may say “is a temple.” It’s very fragile and can be broken very easily. Physically, our body may appear broken if we have a broken limb and are required to be in a cast. However, what about mentally? While not as easy to detect, we can be broken mentally as well, in the form of mental illnesses. Disorders such as anxiety, depression, PTSD, etc. are all forms of mental illness that plague millions of people around the world. While not seen on the outside, mental illnesses can cause severe damage to people, making them the same if not even worse than a physical breaking.

In prior years, mental illness amongst students did not receive much attention. Why would it? Students only have to worry about going to school and completing work. However, this idea is completely wrong as we are learning now. Students for many years have been struggling with mental illnesses, specifically anxiety and depression. Recently, anxiety and depression levels amongst students have skyrocketed because of COVID-19; Changwon Son, a medical professional, argues, “Student mental health in higher education has been an increasing concern. The COVID-19 pandemic situation has brought this vulnerable population into renewed focus” (Son). COVID-19, as many of us know, is a new plague that has affected our lifestyles drastically and unfortunately killed many people. When COVID-19 began, no one knew what to expect or what was going to ensue in the months to follow. We were told to camp out within our homes and wait for this whole thing to blow over. Now, 12 months later we are still facing similar situations that we faced the year prior. There has been some upside within these past 12 months, such as the discovery of a vaccine to COVID-19. However, there have also been many monumental downsides within these past 12 months. One of these downsides is the effect COVID-19 has had on students’ mental health. Students, whether realizing it or not, have been impacted severely by COVID-19. They, along with their teachers, have been having to navigate territory that has never been navigated through before. This, along with many other factors discussed later in this paper, has caused a severe increase in poorer mental health within students. Evan Thompson proves this drastic impact best within his article when he says, “according to a survey by Active Minds in April, 91% of the 2,086 college students surveyed reported that COVID-19 gave them more stress and anxiety. Meanwhile, 81% said the pandemic caused feelings of disappointment and sadness” (Thompson). The ongoing struggles with COVID-19 have had an immeasurable impact on our lives in many ways, but perhaps one of its most profound impacts has been its effects on students’ mental health across the country.

When COVID-19 first entered the United States, people didn’t know what to think or how to act. News outlets and professionals kept contradicting each other, causing a lot of confusion within society. Nonetheless, as cases began to rise around the country, many states tried to stay proactive and began shutting down. These forced shutdowns not only caused businesses to shut down but also caused schools to shut down. This caused a lot of uncertainty and chaos within society as no one knew how long businesses and schools would be shut down for or how this whole thing would pan out. Furthermore, to make matters even worse, schools began transitioning to online learning via Zoom or an alternate online platform. Thus, causing teachers and students to quickly scramble so they wouldn’t miss out on important curriculum. This unsureness within society and having to transition to online learning has had a considerable impact on students across the country. This alone, as many doctors and researchers said, would be more than enough to cause an increase in negative mental illness. As the Center for Disease Control puts it, “Public health actions, such as social distancing, are necessary to reduce the spread of COVID-19, but they can make us feel isolated and lonely and can increase stress and anxiety,” highlighting the immediate impact COVID-19 has had on students (“Mental Health”). As if this wasn’t enough, COVID-19 has also impacted students in far more ways, causing the depression and anxiety levels in students to be at an all-time high.

As stated above, the depression rates amongst students are at an all-time high, and COVID-19 is to blame for this. When COVID first started, many of us only expected it to last for a few short months rather than a full year. Now, all this time elapsed without normalcy since the first shutdown has caused depression rates amongst students to increase for many reasons. First and foremost, the transition to online school has caused depression rates in students to increase. Researchers suggest this is due to students being separated from each other and being unable to interact on a daily basis as they were used to (Wilson). Changwon Son’s research also supports this increase in depression rates because of COVID as she says, “Furthermore, with the exception of high-burnout categories, depression levels among students, reported in several recent studies [33-35], have varied between 29% and 38%, which may suggest an uptick in pandemic-related depressive symptoms among college students” (Son).

Another way COVID has caused depression amongst students is through the cancellation of many events. Many high schoolers were unable to have their prom and other dances due to COVID-19. Additionally, many high school student athletes were unable to play in their final seasons because of COVID-19. Thus, causing many students to miss out on important and memorable moments within their lives. College students have also had many cancellations in events because of COVID. Many club and intramural organizations have been cancelled because of COVID. Furthermore, many events such as tailgating for football games have been cancelled in order to adhere to the social distancing guidelines. Altogether, the cancellations of all these events have caused students depression rates to jump dramatically. Son further proves depression rates amongst students have jumped because of COVID as she suggests within her study that 86% of people (167/195) have elevated depression levels due to decreased social interactions because of social distancing (Son).  In all, the transition to online school and the cancellation of many events due to COVID has caused depression rates amongst students to skyrocket.

COVID’s significant impact on students’ mental health can also be recognized through the surge in anxiety amongst students. Before COVID started, anxiety in students was quite normal. Why wouldn’t it be? Researchers suggest that students felt the most anxious when they felt pressured with homework, being overwhelmed with schoolwork, or having to get an important project in within a specific time period (Son). However, COVID has now taken all these previous anxieties students were facing, elevated them, and added new ones. For example, now while having to worry about completing one’s schoolwork, students also have to worry about surviving a global pandemic. In relation to this, students are also having to worry about their family’s health along with their friends’ health. Additionally, students are also having to face uncertainty left and right, adding more factors causing them to be more anxious. Evan Thompson uses a real-world example within his article to detail this newly added uncertainty and stress related to COVID as he says, “Davis, a 27-year-old Navy veteran who studies applied psychology at Oregon Tech’s Portland-Metro campus, hates being on lockdown. He gets stressed and anxious thinking about when the pandemic will end” (Thompson).

As if all this wasn’t enough, students also have to deal with the elements of school being online. This, like the other factors, has caused students to be more anxious as many students feel like completing schoolwork via online is harder as students may feel “sluggish and unfocused” (Thompson). Changwon Son’s research further supports how COVID has negatively impacted the anxiety levels of students as she adds, “Of the 195 students, 138 (71%) indicated increased stress and anxiety due to the COVID-19 outbreak” (Son). In addition to this, Son’s research also showed that 82% of the surveyed population showed an increased concern about academic performance as a result of COVID-19 (Son). COVID-19 has had a detrimental impact on the anxiety levels of students and will continue to do so if procedures aren’t laid out to help students.

On the contrary, some may argue that students’ anxiety and depression levels are ascending because of other social factors. These factors include but aren’t limited to the stress that comes with living in a global pandemic along with the prolonged isolation. Furthermore, others argue that by going to school online, students’ anxiety levels should be lower as they are minimizing their chance to get COVID. Likewise, arguments suggesting that students can build and have the same camaraderie via Zoom as they did pre-COVID have been made, also, suggesting that students’ anxiety and depression levels shouldn’t be as high as they are. I, as stated above, disagree with both of these statements. As a student, I find both of these arguments to be wrong and misleading. I don’t have the same enjoyment talking and seeing my friends on Zoom. I’d much rather see them in person and talk face-to-face. So, COVID preventing this from happening makes me depressed and anxious.

Overall, COVID-19 has had a significant impact on the mental well-being of students around the country. From the drastic measures schools took to adhere to governmental guidelines when COVID began, to all-time high levels of depression and anxiety amongst students, COVID-19 has done considerable damage. While we can keep talking about how detrimental COVID-19 has been on students’ mental states, we need to start taking action to address the issue. Oliver Wilson says it best as he writes, “a significant decline in PA and mental health among college students occurred under COVID-19 circumstances, and PA did not appear to protect against deterioration in mental health. Proactive and innovative policies, programs, and practices to promote student health and well-being must be explored immediately” (Wilson). If we don’t act now, more students will have their mental states compromised by COVID-19. We must implement counselors and programs within schools that work with students to regain their mental health. While we don’t know what waits for us in the future, we do know what waits for us now, and we need to act now before it is too late!

“Mental Health and Coping During COVID-19.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/managing-stress-anxiety.html.

Pedrelli, Paola, et al. “College Students: Mental Health Problems and Treatment Considerations.” Academic Psychiatric: The Journal of the American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training and the Association for Academic Psychiatry, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Oct. 2015, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4527955/.

Son, Changwon, et al. “Effects of COVID-19 on College Students’ Mental Health in the United States: Interview Survey Study.” Journal of Medical Internet Research, JMIR Publications, 3 Sept. 2020, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7473764/.

Thompson, Evan. “How COVID-19 Has Impacted Student Mental Health.” TheBestSchools.org, Thebestschools.org, 23 Oct. 2020, thebestschools.org/magazine/covid-19-impact-student-mental-health/.

Wilson, Oliver W. A., et al. “The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on US College Students’ Physical Activity and Mental Health.” Journal of Physical Activity & Health, vol. 18, no. 3, Mar. 2021, pp. 272–278. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx? direct=true&db=s3h&AN=149084550&site=eds-live&scope=site.