Addressing the Unique Mental Health Needs of College Students
Objectives
~ Identify the scope of the mental health problem in college students
~ Identify the impact of mental health issues on learning and student retention
~ Learn about the connection between mental health issues and substance abuse
~ Explore unique issues faced by college students
~ Identify the components of a good campus mental health program and other strategies to reduce stressors
Scope of the Problem
~ According to a 2016 American College Health Association survey,
~ 37percent of students reported feeling so depressed within the last 12 months that it was difficult to function
~ 21 percent felt overwhelming anxiety
~ A survey of students seen for mental health services at 66 college counseling centers found that prior to college
~ 10 percent of these students had used psychiatric medications
~ 5 percent had been hospitalized for psychiatric reasons
~ 11 percent had seriously considered suicide
~ 5 percent had attempted suicide.
Scope of the Problem
~ The 2015 NSDUH shows that adults ages 18 or older with past year mental health issues were more likely than other adults in that age group to have used illicit drugs in the same period (32.1 vs 14.8%)
~ The risk of co-occurring disorders is pronounced among college students as they transition from adolescence to adulthood, an age when mental health issues often surface for the first time and in a new environment where substance use is common
~ Increased academic distress is associated with increased mental health issues including suicidal ideation
~ Misuse of drugs and alcohol is correlated with
~ Need to cope with the pressures of college life (6.4% of college students report nonmedicinal use of ADHD medications)
~ Campus culture of alcohol use
Why Do We Care?
~ The overall state of student’s health affects learning.
~ Mental health problems and harmful health behaviors such as substance abuse can impair the quality and quantity of learning.
~ They decrease students’ intellectual and emotional flexibility, weaken their creativity, and undermine their interest in new knowledge, ideas, and experiences.
~ Behavioral health issues such as binge drinking, drug use, cutting and other self-injurious behavior, eating disorders, pornography addiction, and problematic gambling can all be understood as maladaptive strategies to reduce stress and anxiety.
~ Several of those behaviors are reinforced and supported in the social culture of many colleges and universities. (Which behaviors are reinforced in your university?)
Why Do We Care?
~ Students may self-medicate by turning to substance use
~ Substance use is frequently associated with negative personal, social, and community consequences, from regretted actions while intoxicated to “hooking up.”
~ Students need access to care to cope with these events to prevent PTSD, depression and suicidal ideation.
Issues Students Face
~ Stressors
~ New freedoms and independence
~ New surroundings and experiences
~ New social networks
~ Separation from family and established friendships
~ New academic demands
~ Some students may be afraid to seek certain types of help or request accommodations for a mental health issue for fear of being viewed as incapable or being expelled.
~ However, without accommodations, their performance may be negatively affected
Developing Resilience
~ A key component of well-being is resilience—the ability to recognize, face, and manage or overcome problems and challenges, and to be strengthened, rather than defeated, in the process.
~ Resilient graduates better navigate today’s uncertain and volatile economic, employment, and career environments.
~ Challenges to health and well-bein