“How are you?”
It’s a simple question. We hear it every day, several times per day—from friends at break, teachers in our classes, and parents when we come home from school. We often answer with a simple “I’m good, thanks” or “I’m fine, how about you?” – but pause. Let’s be real.
A good amount of the time, we just answer the question without thinking. It’s automatic. The answer slips out easily from between our lips, then we move on to the next part of whatever conversation we’re having. But is it how we really feel? Very rarely do we actually say what we’re feeling when someone asks us, and that’s concerning.
“I feel like [mental health] is a very difficult topic to talk about because there’s a stigma around it,” said junior Jasper Hallock-Wishner. “There’s like—especially in guys—there can be this suppressing feeling like you shouldn’t talk about it to your friends because it isn’t normally talked about.”
And it’s not just you or me or a couple of kids feeling that way–students all over the world feel it, too.
According to the National Library of Medicine, anxiety and depressive disorders are most common in adolescents, yet the majority of today’s youth struggle to seek help to address the issues.
In a 2021 study, the main barriers to seeking help were recognizing their issues, disclosing their problems to others, hesitation to seek professional help, and the influence of family and support around them.
Teens face numerous factors every day that influence their mental health, and one of the biggest stressors is, undoubtedly, school. From academic and social pressures to balancing schoolwork and extracurricular activities to building and sustaining relationships with peers, it’s no secret that school can cause major stress for teens. Possibly the biggest stressor is, of course, grades.
Visual Arts Department Chair and US Arts & Humanities Teacher Charla Gaglio said, “I grew up in a very different time, and my students are always shocked to learn that I didn’t know what my grades were 90% of the time, and I managed to do okay. But the world has shifted, and so there’s this huge emphasis [on grades], and I think students constantly evaluating themselves based on a number that shifts all the time must cause a great deal of stress and anxiety.”
“School mostly affects [students’ mental health] negatively, but I think that just comes with being in high school, and I don’t put any blame on the school itself,” said freshman Boston Littlepage-Santana. “It can be stressful with the workload, and because this is such a high-level school that’s very focused on college prep, even though they do an excellent job of easing us into it, it still can definitely put a lot of pressure on us.”
Many times, when teens experience this stress or other negative emotions, we feel the need to “bottle it all up” and deal with it on our own. This behavior is unhealthy and, unfortunately, it can sometimes lead to severe outcomes.
So, what can we as teens do to prevent this from happening? How can we erase the stigma that’s been built around mental health? The answer is talking about it.
Not many teens freely discuss mental health because it’s hard to or because it can be seen as embarrassing. But it’s not embarrassing, it’s not corny, and it’s not inappropriate. That mindset is outdated and needs to be left in the past.
It can be hard to open up about mental health. Trust me, I know; I’ve struggled with it before. Sometimes it might feel like you’re the only one experiencing your problems, and sometimes it feels like other people don’t care, but I can promise you that isn’t true.
Gaglio said, “I think one of the great things about Shorecrest is that we pride ourselves on being a place where there are a lot of trusted adults. And so what I would say to young people is certainly, of course, speak with your family. If that’s not something you feel is accessible to you, then turn to some of the trusted adults that you might have here at school because we certainly want to help you.”
US Counselor Brian Wiley said, “There’s nothing wrong with admitting you need help. Talking to someone will help you feel not so alone. Chances are you’re not the only one in the world who’s going through that specific problem. There’s so many people in the world that someone out there is bound to be able to help you.”
The school has numerous resources for people who are struggling, including Wiley, who will be happy to talk to you and help you out. The Mental Health Matters club hosts peer-led support groups on campus. There are people here who want to help you. The first step we as teens can take towards improving our mental health is to talk about it, so please don’t feel afraid to.
