Mental health concerns frequently hamper students’ academic success. Every year, increasing incidences of poor mental wellbeing in students are recorded. It is notable that students experiencing mental illnesses can be seen at each CUNY campus. While there is mental health support on campus, such as therapy, many students do not access them. Even professors and administrators who have never personally experienced the effects of mental illness may struggle to comprehend how to aid students.

With so many students on campus suffering from anxiety or depression, it severely influences their ability to study and participate in their schoolwork. When students face stress and depression, their mental health is affected, which leads to social and behavioral problems, poor performance and learning, neglected cleanliness, helpless self-care habits, and low confidence.
At the point when I started my first semester of school, I felt the strain. I was unable to attend my courses; I pretended to be healthy to achieve, but on the inside, I was suffering from severe melancholy. I did, however, seek assistance from my teachers. Even with this assistance, however, it was not easy to obtain the treatment that we needed.

It may be challenging for instructors to differentiate anxiety and depression because these issues frequently manifest differently to various students, but understanding the mixes of practices to look out for is critical. When fear and depression are not treated in students, the symptoms might further develop, causing severe problems in their school.

Mental wellbeing difficulties can harm a student’s energy level, reliability, intellectual capacity, and good faith, resulting in poor performance. Many students who suffer from mental health miss class as a result of their illness. They are more likely to perceive themselves as less academically capable than their peers. Students who do not believe in themselves are less inclined to put out the effort.

To higher education officials, now is the moment to formulate solutions to address students’ mental health issues and offer additional support to ensure that students can have successful academic careers. College must foster a positive environment that does not stigmatize mental health concerns. Students require positive examples to learn how to deal with difficulties and realize that requesting assistance shows strength. Students need to be reassured that communicating their challenges, disappointments, achievements, and recovery methods is an excellent approach to connect and build an environment that promotes mental health.

Leticia Zang Oyanna is a sophomore at Stella and Charles Guttman Community College, CUNY and a member of YI-New York’s Fall 2021 Young Advocates Program.