Stop Sacrificing Your Mental Health for Grades

Yes, I'm talking to you.

Imagine a world where you didn't have to pull an all-nighter just for a passing grade. Where you could take time off when your mental health dipped. Where concerns about your mental health were treated as valid reasons to delay assignments and not just 'excuses.'

To most Americans, that world is a faraway fantasy. Nearly one in five kids are struggling with a mental health disorder: depression, anxiety, etc. Yet, nearly 80% of students don't get the help they need.

Additionally, one survey polling high schools found 83% of students viewed school as somewhat or a significant source of stress, whereas 13% viewed school as an extreme source of stress.

So why do so many students feel this way? The short answer: the school system sucks. The long answer? Well... there's a lot.

For one thing, teachers assign way too much work. The National Education Association recommends students should be doing 10 minutes worth of homework multiplied by their grade. So a 6th grader would get 60 min of homework, whereas an 11th grader would get 110 minutes of homework.

Yet of course, this is rarely the case. One study found that high school students spend up to 3.5 hours a night on school work. And this is on top of getting up barbarically early, something that has been proven to harm teenagers, seven hours nonstop of school, and the extra curricular activities needed to be 'well-rounded.'

And then, of course, there's the excessive pressure put on students to be successful and get into a good college. This pressure, along with the added factor that our school system defines success as good grades, often leads to student attaching their self esteem and value to grades.

Similarly, you have workaholism, the compulsive desire to work in order to be 'productive'. Many workaholics also meet the criteria for mental disorders like anxiety, depression, OCD, or ADHD.

And of course, the driving component behind it all: capitalism. Under a capitalist society, productivity is essential. After all, the more productive you are, the more work you get done, and the more money you make. Hence, springs the need to be as productive as possible. This need for productivity could be healthy if you balance it right. However, from the neglection of necessities like eating and sleeping to work, workaholism is born.

This need for productivity drives a neglection of mental health, and the stigma surrounding discussing and treating mental health. This stigma, in turn, contributes to why the school system fails to acknowledge its negative effect on mental health, and why so many students are suffering under it.

Okay, I know what you're thinking: so, school is bad for my mental health, but what can I do to change that?

Simple: have discussions about mental health. Bring it up with your parents, friends, doctors, etc. It may seem like it won't help, but it's enough to make a difference in the lives of people you know. Having discussions about mental health, educating yourself about mental disorders, and encouraging others to get professional diagnosis and seek therapy will ultimately make a difference.