Please forward this to any interested person or organization!
Helping Your College Student with Their Emotional Life and Stress----NOW!
Summer is a great time to support and advise your college student about their emotional health!
Many students will not tell their parents if they are feeling down. They want to appear strong and independent to their friends and family, wearing a mask of happiness when they are hurting inside.
Many students feel the need to excel in college and so will not admit the pressure they are under.
In 1954, the social psychologist Leon Festinger put forward the social comparison theory, which posits that we try to determine our worth based on how we stack up against others.
In the era of social media, such comparisons take place on a screen with carefully curated depictions that don’t provide the full picture. Mobile devices escalate the comparisons from occasional to nearly constant.
Gregory T. Eells, director of counseling and psychological services at Cornell University, believes social media is a huge contributor to the misperception among students that peers aren’t also struggling.
When students remark during a counseling session that everyone else on campus looks happy, he tells them: “I walk around and think, ‘That one’s gone to the hospital. That person has an eating disorder. That student just went on antidepressants.’ As a therapist, I know that nobody is as happy or as grown-up as they seem on the outside.”
MANY COLLEGE STUDENTS TODAY THINK THAT THEY ARE INADEQUATE AND UNHAPPY COMPARED TO EVERYONE ELSE---largely because of the pressure of their life and false impressions through social media.
Remember: You don't have to be a student to call a help line. You can be a caregiver, pastor, parent or friend to ask for information and support.
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
We can all help prevent suicide. The Lifeline provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones, and best practices for professionals.
We educate, empower, provide resources and consultation to ALL faith based communities so that they can bring awareness, reduce stigma and provide hope about mental illness and suicide prevention.
