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Cheyenne Asato
Co-Editor in Chief
Going to college is
a significant change
in a student’s life; we
move—sometimes
across country—we
leave everything we
have known— our
family, our friends, our
home—and we start
somewhere completely new and relatively unknown. This
advancement mobilizes many to thrive
and succeed, often
bringing out a different and improved
side of students. But
for a few—around
10 percent—college
brings crippling fear,
anxiety, and stress
much above the expected.
According to
UCLA’s Cooperative
Institutional Research
Program’s yearly
American Freshmen Survey, in 2014
9.5 % of the 153,000
full-time freshmen
college students
surveyed disclosed
that they “frequently
felt depressed.” The
survey also revealed
that incoming college students reported the lowest
self-rated emotional
health in the past 49
years the survey has
been conducted.
This means that
SUMMER 2015
Feature
The Freshmen 10: College F
modern freshmen are
facing challenges
so burdensome and
alien compared to
students in the past,
that their mental
health is deteriorating.
Kara McCann, the
director of special
services at OCSA, is a
licensed professional
clinical council and
family therapist. She
says a frequent factor in mental health is
stress.
“Elevation in stress
could potentially
make conditions
worse or it could
make it more difficult
for [students] to cope
because [they’re]
removed from what
was previously [their]
support system,” said
McCann.
College can act as
a catalyst for mental disorders, and for
some students this
sudden change of
scenery and amount
of emotional support
leads to isolation. This
can worsen pre-existing conditions. McCann says it is common for pre-existing
mental health issues
to be exacerbated in
college.
On the other hand,
many mental illnesses
don’t appear or
have obvious symp-
Graph provided by: Cooperative Institutional Re
Institute
A decrease in physical socializing is parelled by a
of tangible companionship could be a possible ex
evaluated mental condition. The increase in time sp
students are following the new wave of relationshi
social setting. There has also been a falling trend wh
party less than an hour a week increasin
toms until collegeage (late teens to
early 20s), leaving
those students surprised and unprepared.
McCann emphasizes the importance of
“psycho-education,”
where students are
educated on how
to identify the signs
of common mental
illnesses, and how to
interact and communicate with people
who might be suffering the effects
of a mental condition. This education
would provide much
needed insight and
empathy for college
students who could
be more prepared to
spot other students’
needs.
She acknowledges a “significant”
change in a person’s
behavior, character, or actions as