College can be one of the best times of your life or it can be one of the longest, most uncomfortable four years of your life. Students who deal with anxiety and depression have a much harder time making it through their college years while still maintaining their grades. As the years go by, I have more and more friends struggle with their daily lives on campus because they are so worried about what is to come. They do not stop and take time for themselves. There is so much pressure on high school students to immediately go to college that they do not have time to prepare for how different college life is and develop the management skills it takes to juggle everything.

For anyone dealing with anxiety and depression, I would say that there is hope. You are not alone. There are so many ways to deal with anxiety that are not just therapy and medicine. I have struggled in the past with anxiety and I have gone to therapy so I realize that it does help. For me, I deal with my anxiety in other ways. I try to stay focused on school while I still go out and enjoy my time in school. There is so much more to experience than just reading your textbook in the library. I have an outgoing personality but I understand needing some time alone. Not everyone is an extrovert, and that’s okay. I have found that spending some time away from others and my constant studies and writing helps me de-stress greatly. Talking it out with others what it is exactly makes you anxious can help. Going for a run and being alone with your thoughts can be just as beneficial. Dealing with anxiety and depression is something that so many people go through and there are proven methods of dealing with it for both introverts and extroverts.

According to a survey done by Inside Higher Ed, 62 percent of college age adults dropped out of college due to anxiety or depression. From August to November 2011, the NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) surveyed 765 people diagnosed with a mental health condition who are currently enrolled in college (68 percent were) or were enrolled within the past five years. These people dropped out simply because the balance between school and anxiety or depression became too much to handle. This struggle is often ignored by schools and sometimes, even friends. It is time to stop the destruction of student’s education from anxiety and depression.

If you see a friend struggling with anxiety or depression, do not stand by and watch. Someone struggling with anxiety or depression needs to have help. Oftentimes, it is hard to beat anxiety or depression alone. Someone who has help dealing with their issues is more likely to overcome them. Let’s be the generation that stands up to depression and anxiety. Let’s stop the college dropouts because of anxiety or depression. If you are out there and are struggling, remember that you are not alone. There is a way out of your problems and there is hope. You are more than your issues and you can become greater than those problems. You are more.

*Statistics taken from Inside Higher Education and the Anxiety and Depression Association of America