Summer and anxiety in college students: Empower Counseling in Birmingham, Alabama.
Summer can be a time of relaxation and rejuvenation. Summer can also be a time for high anxiety, especially for college students.
Depression, anxiety, and loneliness are more and more common among college students. A survey at a large university in 2020 revealed that half of the students screened positive for anxiety and/or depression. A whopping 83% stated that their mental health was negatively affecting their performance in school.
With depression and anxiety being so prevalent among college students, we can not expect students to just snap out of it when they come home for the summer.
In fact, such an abrupt change, going from school to home, can trigger anxiety and depression, even if those conditions were not present during the school year.
Think about what the transition from school to home can look like for our students.
At school they are typically surrounded by friends. They have their routine of when they attend class, when they engage in activities outside of class, when and where they eat, and when and where they study. Their schedules are full or even overflowing with things to do, people to see, ad places to go.
Chances are, when they come home, everything is different. They might have a job, but they have been separate from their old high school friends so maybe they have lost connection to friend groups at home. Maybe without a strict routine, they find it difficult to get up out of a bed before half of the day is over. That can leave students feeling unproductive and not to proud of who they are.
If you have a student with a very bright and active mind, your student might find herself with so much unused mental energy, that anxiety creeps in.
If you aren’t sure whether your student is suffering from anxiety or depression, here are a few of the common signs:
Anxiety in college students can look like…
Irritability:
If your student snaps at everyone and is more easily irritated that usual , this can be a sign of depression or anxiety.
Isolating:
If your student doesn’t want to leave his or her room and engage with others, he might be anxious or depressed.
Sleeping too much
or having trouble going to sleep: Sleeping too much can be a sign of depression and having trouble falling asleep can be a sign of anxiety.
Lack of self-care:
If your student is not taking showers or looks like she is not taking care of hygiene or appearance, this could be a sign of depression and low self worth.
These are only a few of the common signs and symptoms of anxiety and depression. If you are unsure whether your student is suffering from anxiety or depression, call Empower Counseling. Our therapists, Kathryn, Adam, and Kristine, are happy to speak with you about the mental health of your student.
Regardless of whether your student reports suffering from anxiety or depression at school, or you notice a change when he/she is home for the summer, summer is a great time to begin counseling for anxiety and depression.
All of our compassionate and knowledgeable counselors work with college students regularly. We practice Acceptance Commitment Therapy which is proven effective to treat anxiety and depression of college students. Through ACT, we uncover the root cause of the anxiety or depression. Then we help students learn strategies to move away from anxiety and depression, while becoming more clear on what they value and what they want their lives to look like. Then we help your student take the actions to have that life.
At Empower Counseling, we help college students from the University of Alabama, Auburn University, Samford, and Birmingham-Southern with anxiety counseling for college students. We also offer counseling for teens, young adults and professionals with counseling for anxiety, depression, and difficult life transitions.
Contact Empower Counseling today by sending a quick message at the bottom of our home page so that your student may begin on a path toward a better life today..