Since coming to UD I can personally say both my mental and physical health have deteriorated. I’m a very social person but here it’s different, I have prioritized my school work so much sometimes I feel I have no social life. I feel consumed from the expectations I have, that I don’t know when to have fun. Physically, I wish I could be more motivated to go to the gym  since my body was used to dancing everyday for 5+ hours. But on the other hand I love the freedom and responsibility of college, but I feel people don’t know how to balance it all. I feel like I’m not alone when it comes to these struggles so I asked my friends, “Has your mental or physical health changed since being at UD, if so has it had a positive or negative effect on you?” 

My friend Lauren was eager to share her thoughts, “Well, I walk a lot here” and to my surprise she said she’s been more relaxed since coming to UD. She often felt she was too relaxed and that this semester she’s going to have to learn how to prioritize her academics. On the other hand she misses being surrounded by family and can get sick of the same schedule every week. 

My friend Taylor felt a little different, since she was constantly playing soccer in high school she hasn’t learned how to prioritize her physical health since it was taken care of when she was doing something she loves. According to her, “I’ve had plenty of mental breakdowns since being here.” Taylor is constantly doing her work and believes high school did nothing to help her prepare for college. 

If we see ourselves struggling then why don’t we do something about it. I have personally made the effort to seek the help that I needed. The counseling center in Perkins is a great place to just talk about how you’re feeling, cause keeping in your emotions can lead to something much more detrimental. I don’t know if it’s just not advertised enough here or if students are scared but I wanted to know from my friends if they thought that students should be taught how to cope with the stress and anxiety of college and of course they said yes.

My friend Emily believes that since we are required to take basic courses such as freshman seminar and psychology, we should have a course devoted to learning about how to cope with the transition from high school to college. My roommate, Quinn, even told me, “I don’t even know where the counseling center is.” I couldn’t believe that since we as freshmen are forced to take a seminar class to help us get adjusted. Quinn also has struggled with the anxiety of college but has now accepted that is part of life but that shouldn’t be the case. 

Whether physical or mental health, college students need to be taught balance. No student should have to keep their feelings in just cause they are too scared to be judged. Overall, through this process I learned students are in need of help. They need to cope with their feelings and be taught that you don’t have to have a mental breakdown over an assignment or just cause you’re homesick and your friends not doesn’t mean you have to feel the same way. We all just need to learn, when to ask for help.