Throughout the years, college students have been depressed for a variety of reasons, and school just might be making things worse.
The rate of depression across college campuses is 44%, with 15% having suicidal thoughts, according to a 2023 article from Mayo Clinic. From pressure to make friends to heavy course loads, students, including myself, have expressed that their motivation to come to school has lowered.
Depression as a college student sucks, especially when you have to deal with working a full-time job and teachers who don’t take into consideration students’ mental health. As a student at Palomar, very few teachers have taken my issues seriously, and would rather I put my focus into turning assignments in on time.
In a survey done by The Telescope, Palomar students answered various questions regarding depression and what about campus life makes it worse. In the survey, 38.5% of students stated they didn’t suffer or have symptoms of depression before college. While 53.5% said that while in college, their depression worsened.
Like many students, I found it nearly impossible to find mental health resources around campus. It took me a while to look around online to find out if Palomar College offered any resources for its students. Palomar has done a lousy job at promoting these mental health services and making students’ mental health their priority. This has caused me to shy away from on-campus resources to help with my mental health issues.
The thought of working a job while being a full-time student and maintaining a good GPA has been exhausting, to say the least. However, many students like myself can not afford the luxury of not having a job. With some students even having to take care of their family, school, and work, a student’s depression and anxiety can skyrocket. There is not nearly enough being done to lower the stress and anxiety students may be feeling.
Depression can lead to worse things and often can push students to participate in activities such as drinking or drugs, according to WebMD. During stressful times such as midterms or finals, substance abuse may increase. Stressful times may be triggering to some, and support may be needed.
Various campuses, including Palomar College, offer on-site resources and support for student mental health. Palomar College offers free Behavioral Health Counseling Services to all students. Students can visit the Behavior Health Counseling Service website for a list of resources provided.
The Behavioral Health Services is located on the San Marcos campus in room 2 of the NB building, which can be found on this map. These counseling services are available Monday through Thursday, 8:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., and Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., by appointment only. Students can reach the behavioral health services center at (760) 891-7531 or email [email protected].
While few articles state depression rates amongst college students are lowering, there are little to no articles that provide how these rates have lowered. The surveys sent out weren’t completed at times, which caused students high anxiety, such as during midterms/finals. Fewer articles discussed what other resources needed to be implemented to lower these rates more.
Palomar College needs to make changes immediately when dealing with students’ mental health. There needs to be more ways for students to access campus resources. More advertising needs to be done so students know what resources are available. The Behavioral Resource Services building is so far from the front of the campus that there is little to no advertising. There also needs to be more signs throughout campus letting students know resources are available.
If you or someone you may know is suffering from suicidal thoughts, dial 998 or text HOME to 741741 to reach a crisis text line. Here is a list of mental health resources for students.
