Back to School: Managing Your Mental Health

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Mental health problems in students aged 15-25 are common, occurring in about one in five. Seventy-five percent of students who struggle with their mental health will develop these issues prior to the age of 24 (1).

Younger brains are more sensitive to a stress hormone called cortisol, which can affect levels of dopamine. Researchers have found that an excess of dopamine can cause major changes in a young person whose brain is developing (2).

It is important to educate students about the preliminary signs and symptoms of schizophrenia. These symptoms may include forgetting to eat or shower, a lack of sleep or excessive sleep, apathy, and losing interest in things a young person used to love. They may also involve isolation or a change in personality.

My college story

In 1999, I began college at the University of Southern California, where I would study biochemistry on scholarship. I started having mental health issues my first semester there. My first symptoms included persistent mania.

My life was comprised of studying, serving as the community orchestra concertmaster, and doing research. Every minute was spent fulfilling my responsibilities. I was like a machine that never stopped for a break.

At one point that semester, a friend invited me to see a basketball game. I attended for five minutes before leaving and heading back to the lab because my mind was racing. While I was at the lab that evening, I didn’t even accomplish anything. I just felt overwhelming anxiety if I tried to take even a little time off or leave the work atmosphere.

I ended my first semester at USC with all A’s except a B+ in organic chemistry. I also ended my semester severely manic and unable to concentrate, as though I were a different person than the friendly and healthy person who had arrived a few months earlier at college.

When I traveled home to spend Christmas with my family, I was persistently unhappy. I couldn’t manage to enjoy the tree or just enjoy being with my family. On Christmas Day, I wrote my research professor a detailed email with a research proposal. He responded to me immediately with a long and comprehensive email. Apparently, I was not the only one who struggled to take a break from work.

While at my parents’ house, I felt I could barely breathe. I couldn’t relax and felt like I was in a high-speed chase that never stopped and that I needed to be busy every minute. I could barely function until I had returned to Los Angeles to resume my academic pursuits. I did not know that I had already entered a preliminary phase of schizophrenia.

Looking back, I was not yet experiencing psychosis, but something was clearly wrong. I was too busy to carry on a normal conversation with friends and family about what was going on in my life. However, I was entirely unaware anything was amiss. My parents and professors were proud of my grades and my research findings.

Years later, after I had fully recovered, I had long conversations with my parents about their memories of that time and discovered that they thought something was wrong. However, they assumed it was a normal adolescent phase of adjustment. I had just turned 18 years old and started college, which opened a whole new world of independence and adjustment.

I eventually went from obsessed with research and school to completely losing interest in these activities. Then, I isolated myself from friends and family before becoming flagrantly psychotic years later.

As young people begin school this fall, it is important to discuss the impact of stress on mental health. For one, it is important to have a balanced life. No matter how busy a student is, he or she must occasionally take time off to take a walk, go out to dinner with a friend, or watch sports or a concert. Never taking a break is unhealthy and can even lead to a reduction in the quality of the work you do. Taking a break can refresh your mind.

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During my first three years at USC, I went to church faithfully, which for me was a healthy decision and enriched my life. Eventually, my church friends would try to help me see my life was out of balance, though I wasn’t ready to hear it. Looking back, the people I met at church deeply cared about me.

Major takeaways

Besides schizophrenia, it is important for students to know the symptoms of depression, anxiety, and other mental illnesses. Like schizophrenia, depression and anxiety, though commonly called mental illnesses, are, in fact, chemical disorders of the brain. They are nothing to be embarrassed by, and today they are very treatable. Medications currently available are effective with fewer side effects than ever before.

Counseling can make a significant difference in a student’s life. Even a chat with an older friend can help. I wish I had listened to my pastor in 2001 when he gently told me I needed to either focus on my studies or take some time off and that I shouldn’t be so isolated. I wish I had been willing to be evaluated by a physician much earlier in my life.

Most high schools, colleges, and universities have mental health resources on campus, with counselors and other professionals available. If you feel something is amiss, don’t be afraid to talk to someone or to ask for help!

I was unable to finish my bachelor’s degree until I did get help, as it took a medication that restored a healthy mood, cleared my mind, and eliminated my psychosis to enable me to study again. On medication, I reestablished a healthy balance in life with my studies and healthy relationships with family and friends.

For those starting school, know that brain disorders are common and watch for them carefully, especially if your family has a history of mental illness. Professional evaluation and treatment can be the key to lasting success both academically and personally.