Importance of Mental Health in Adolescents and Students
Introduction
Adolescence is an important stage of life with gradual physical, social, and mental developmental growth. Today at least one in every six people are in their adolescence. And at this time of their life, they are vulnerable to different mental health problems. This is one of the major reasons society should promote emotional and psychological education to breed healthy adults. Globally, an estimated 15% of adolescents, especially students, experience mental complications, which society generally ignores. This is another reason educational institutions assign tasks relating to the mental health of students. So, any academic learner can write or find an essay or dissertation on mental health for good grades and awareness of this important matter. And also assist higher academicians chasing a PHD or diploma program fulfill their dissertation or paper for better gpa. Moreover, without good mental health, most adolescents won’t be able to perform basic life activities. Some of these are having a healthy sleep routine, regular exercising, problem-solving, academic success, and interpersonal skills. Do you now see the importance of mental health in adolescents, especially among students?
How Can Students Maintain Their Mental Health in Their School Years?
Research from the American Psychiatric Association, APA showed that about fifty percent of mental health problems start by the age of 14. And judging from the rates of mentally ill adolescents, this is an alarming number that needs immediate attention. But how? How can students maintain their state of mind during their school years? Before we go further, we’ll like to add that many factors affect an adolescent’s state of mind. These factors may come from different areas. For instance, stress, too much exposure to peer pressure, and poor exploration of self-value contribute greatly to it. In addition, social media is another significant factor contributing to the high rate of mental issues in adolescents. Another determinant of this problem depends on the quality of their relationship with friends and families. From harsh parenting to bullying, or bad peers, the risk of mental problems keeps going on the rise amongst these young adults. So, how can students and adolescents, in general, maintain a healthy state of mind? There is no single answer to this question; but students can start by sharing their problems with either a parent, teacher, tutor or mental health service. Once they start feeling uneasiness in their state of mind, they should be able to communicate honestly and openly to someone. Also, education from guardians, parents, teachers, and elders can assist young adults to maintain their mental health. By asking questions, observing behavioral cues, teaching life lessons, and listening to answers, many will open up on their state of mind. Most especially, schools have a major role to play in this subject matter.
What Can Schools Do to Help Students Keep Sanity?
Everyone has a role to play in helping these youngsters maintain a healthy state of mind. Parents, schools, the media, health care settings, social settings, and the community all have a role to play here. Just that most adolescents spend most of their lives in school writing and developing. This is why the school has a greater role to play. How can educational settings help these youngsters? Firstly, schools can provide a supportive and safe ground to educate students. This can be either a virtual or physical program centered on providing valuable information to their students about mental health. They can also link their students to mental health care services. School levels like university or college settings can train staff to integrate social-emotional learning into their curriculum. Every issue regarding a students’ wellbeing, especially the misconceptions about mental illness begins with the school. This is because educational settings are where teenagers and adults learn behaviors that may affect their self-value positively or negatively. There, many students experience bullying, social stigmatization, and conflicts that eventually cause mental imbalance. Which may later distract and affect their career by performing poorly in their studying course due to a bad mental health.
Mental Health Education and Curriculum Helps
Every school environment should implement health education into its curriculums. This would create a safe and interactive environment for any student to recognize and share what they’re dealing with mentally. Before we continue, we want to quickly share a story of a mentally depressed young schoolgirl of about 14-18 years. Her teacher noticed weird changes in the girls’ academic performance. This young girl stopped doing her homework and got lower grades in tests and exams. She dressed meticulously to school and even distanced herself from her mates. Her teacher, Barile, who is an expert in mental health education studied and recognized that this girl was facing some issues. Immediately she confirmed what was wrong and how suicidal the girl already was, this girl was admitted to a hospital for a while. Thankfully, she was given professional therapy and medication, which she later got better and managed to graduate with her mates. This story shows how education and curriculum help these ignorant youngsters. Stories like this have made over 70% of British parents talk to their wards’ school about the mental health education curriculum. Parents now want health education and programs to be part of every school curriculum. They feel it would open lines of communication between parents and schools to share their concerns about their wards’ wellbeing and academic performance.
Conclusion
Mental health is a crucial aspect of every adolescent, especially students. Still, many ignore the dangerous effect of mental illness by watching over 20% of young adults battle it on their own. What these children need is the necessary education to help promote and stop stigmatizing mental health. And schools happen to be the closest setting to educating students on this issue. Schools need to build an interactive environment where health issues can be discussed openly among students, parents, and schools. Where awareness can be raised about mental health complications like substance abuse, self-harm, and other negative coping behavior. A solid educational curriculum empowered with the knowledge for students’ mental health awareness is now important in any academic environment. This will allow mentally-ill adolescents to get the right support before it’s too late.
