College Suicides

Colleges like UCI, are encountering a growing problem with suicides on campus. Not just UCI, but apparently all across the U.S. suicides have been increasing. But what can the Universities do? Counseling centers are overwhelmed by the amount of work they have treating students. Because, which makes sense, schools can't discriminate based on mental health. So what happens is, the colleges are required by law to allow more unbalanced students to undergo the same amount of pressure.

One fourth of college students go into college already taking some kind of anti-depressant or drug. So now the death rate is increasing. The schools lose either way. The parents sue if the kids aren't let in or if they kill themselves. So now the school's are looking bad because they couldn't do more. But the truth is, they didn't have time with all the other problems from other students. The schools "complain that budget cuts have reduced staffing even as the number of students who need help has increased".

My point is: It's fucking hard to be a student and a kid in today's world


Interesting statistics:

Student health report
(Within the last school year, students reported
these impacted their schoolwork to the extent of lower grades or dropped
classes) :

Stress: 32 percent
Sleep difficulties: 23.9 percent
Concern for a troubled friend or family member: 18 percent
Depression or
anxiety disorder: 15.7 percent
Death of a friend or family member: 8.5
percent
Alcohol use: 7.3 percent
Drug use: 2.3 percent
Eating
disorder: 1.3 percent
Within the last school year, students reported the
following at least once:
Feeling overwhelmed by all they had to do: 93.4
percent
Feeling exhausted: 91.5 percent
Feeling very sad: 80.4 percent
Feeling things were hopeless: 62.2 percent
Feeling so depressed it was
difficult to function: 43.8 percent
Seriously considering suicide: 9.3
percent
Attempted suicide: 1.3 percent
Source: American College Health
Association 2006 Student Health Survey of 94,806 students at 117 schools