Although many people quickly dismiss depression as an illegitimate mental health issue, this phenomenon continues to affect college students, whose personal, academic, and interpersonal development may be deterred. Depression among college-aged students, which is caused by poor lifestyle habits and the “pressure to get good grades” will continue to grow if action is not taken to provide the correct type of treatment (Kerr). As a result, access to satisfactory mental health services that reflect understanding of the college environment that these students are in, is a necessity for this cohort. Various stakeholders have already taken steps to prevent the spread of this mental illness. The University of South Florida (USF), has a Counseling Center that promises to approach mental health through culturally inclusive counseling. On the other hand, Johns Hopkins University’s Counseling Center (JHU), states that it will allocate services in a healthy environment that is meant to stimulate self-potential. Despite the various resources provided to students, often times many will turn away because of stigmatization. College students should be informed about the benefits of counselors on campus, because counseling methods are more effective than hospitalization. A stressful environment may onset drug abuse, and untreated depression increases the likelihood of suicide.
Improper treatment and unsuitable health professionals who do not have the specific training to follow up on treatment, are the causes of inadequate quality services for both diagnosed and undiagnosed college aged-students enduring depression. According to the United States Department of Labor, a college counselor can be defined as a professional who helps students “understand and overcome social or behavioral problems through classroom guidance lessons,” work with students to improve organizational and time management “abilities,” and educate students about bullying, drug abuse, and “planning for careers after graduation,” (“School”). Although most people have heard of psychologists instead of counselors providing mental health services, counselors began to make an appearance during the 1940's, when these professionals were needed to help the government train specialists for the military placements. Carl Rogers published a text about a new client-centered approach to therapy that emphasized, “the belief that the client is a partner in the healing process rather than a patient on which the professional imposes a cure” (6). As implied, mental health counseling has helped college students improve academic performance and progress toward their degrees, as a result of interpersonal interaction that only exists between a student and a counselor well informed of the challenges of a college environment. Mental illness in the hospitalis less seen, because people typically spend time in the hospital to temporarily recover from a traumatic time, and so that their medications can be “monitored during an acute episode when mental illness temporarily worsens” (Mental Health America). As a result, encouraging students to help one another and be aware of a change in behavior of a peer, as well as educating someone in need about the services provided by a counselor at the university, would be extremely helpful in opening up the doors of adequate help for college-aged students going through depression.
Depression left untreated among this cohort could lead to serious implications that may affect the college student’s future. According to a study done by Deykin, Levy, and Wells, college students who meet criteria for major depressive disorder, are “almost always subject to depressive illness first and alcohol/substance abuse subsequently” (180). A research study done by the American College Health Association showed that those who described feelings of sadness, hopeless, depression or contemplated suicide, “were significantly more likely to report non-medical use of any prescription drug” (Partnership News Service, 2012). This indicates that depressed college students may be abusing drugs as a way to cope with the symptoms of this mental illness and in hopes of “self-medicating” with unsatisfactory prescribed medication. Although various measures such as banning alcohol in dormitories, enforcing class attendance, and reducing the number of bars around campus are being implemented, some stakeholders are taking this issue a step further. The Johns Hopkin’s University Counseling Center (JHU), states that, “The Counseling Center provides services to assist students in meeting their personal and mental health needs and goals,” and that it “has the resources to provide individual and group therapy as well as psychiatric consultations to meet the needs of most students” (“Our Services”). Providing group therapy sessions on campus allows students to gain an understanding of personal problems and hear different perspectives that will allow them to figure out effective solutions and ways to think about the issue, as well as become more comfortable in their environments. With the help of this stakeholder’s counseling methods, students can look past pressure exerted in a varied college setting to obtain coping strategies against stress that may lead to depression, and learn to combat it before it manifests itself in the college student; preventing further damage.
Suicide rates among this group are especially high, as a result of depression. According to the Suicide Prevention Resource Center, depression continues to be the number one cause of death among college-aged students (WISQARS, 1999-2014). As depression continues to manifest itself in both diagnosed and undiagnosed college students because of stressful factors in the environment, the mental health of students may lead them to end their lives. In the book Reducing Suicide: A National Imperative, SK Goldsmith, TC Pellmar, AM Kleinman, and WE Bunney, the researchers discuss “biological changes that are associated with suicide,” as well as “the impact of social and cultural influences,” and medical interventions (xi). The various pressures that students in college feel may lead to them make unwise decisions such as drug abuse or getting involved in other detrimental aspects. As a result, depression begins to develop as students lose control of a balance in this stage of their lives, and experience feelings of hopelessness. The University of South Florida’s Counseling Center is a stakeholder working to prevent depression from causing further damage in students, and promoting awareness about the counseling services available. The USF Stakeholder states that “The Counseling Center is here for you, providing a variety of psychological services for all currently registered students on the Tampa campus of the University of South Florida.” The way they can do this is by “flexibly meeting the changing mental health needs of a diverse campus community through sustainable inter-professional partnerships, and providing inclusive, innovative, and accessible mental health services." Being a multicultural counselor is about interactions between the counselor and the patient, and how cultural interactions can affect the way that the problem is being addressed. “Identifying cultural differences” through nonverbal behavior may be a key in getting better at understanding how to treat the root cause of the mental illness among college-aged students (Five Important Aspects of Multicultural Counseling Competencies, 2014). As the population continues to rapidly expand and become more diverse, more multiculturally competent counselors are needed to closely connect with the students, and provide more direct assistance to students contemplating suicide as a result of academic, cultural and society pressures
Depression in college-aged students is an ongoing phenomenon among campuses that requires immediate and effective treatment. Counseling is more practical than seeing a psychologist, because students feel more comfortable going to their counselors, and these professionals understand the college environment more than primary care practitioners. In addition, drug abuse and suicide would be greatly reduced if students were aware of the services available to them on campus, to be able to get through any stage of depression. The best that can be done for college-aged students enduring depression is to educate them about the mental health services available to them on campus, and make them aware of the problematic effects of depression that is not consistently treated.
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