Are you experiencing anxiety, fatigue, loss of interest or pleasure in usual activities, oversleeping, appetite and weight changes, feelings of hopelessness, difficulty concentrating, and irritability?
You could be suffering from depression.
According to a survey taken by the American College Health Association, 15 percent of college students were formally diagnosed with depression in 2004, and nearly half of all college students said that they have felt so depressed at one point in time that they had trouble functioning. The rate of depression is up from 10 percent four years ago.
“When young people leave home and establish their own independence, it is not uncommon for some people to struggle with adjustments to this new autonomy,” said Susan Birge, Director of Fairfield Counseling Services. “Mood disorders, such as depression and anxiety disorders often emerge between 18 and 25 years old.”
Birge said that adjusting to a new environment, a new roommate, new friends, new classes and a lack of structure can result in some stress.
“When the stress intensifies, depression can worsen, eating disorders can develop, substance abuse can be used as an escape or as self-medicating and relationships with friends and family members can become tense and conflicted,” said Birge.
Birge said that more students are coming to college having been to a psychiatrist or having seen a counselor or therapist. This is a national trend. It is also a national trend that counseling services on college campuses are seeing more hospitalizations for serious psychological conditions, more visits to the emergency rooms for eating disorders, substance abuse and attempted suicides.
“Counseling centers across the nation report an increase in the numbers of students using their services as well as the prevalence of more complex and severe cases,” said Birge. “Fairfield University fits right in with these national trends.”
Birge said that Fairfield Counseling Services provides “around the clock” coverage to students who are emotionally distressed and in need of immediate response. Last year, 13 percent of Fairfield University students walked through the “Dolan arches” to meet with a counselor.
“I’ve had a number of friends who have been depressed,” said Heather Bouzan ’06. “Some admitted it and got help. Some did not.”
“All have different experiences with depression, but it stems from not being able to cope with everything going on in their lives and just shutting it off,” she added.
Clinical depression can affect your body, mood, thoughts and behavior, according to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). It can change your eating habits, how you feel and think about things, your ability to work and study and how you interact with people. It is not a passing mood or a sign of personal weakness.
Depression can be successfully treated by a mental health professional or certain health care providers. With the right treatment, 80 percent of those who seek help get better, according to NIMH.
According to NIMH, common stressors in college life include: changes in your social life, exposure to new people, ideas, and temptations, awareness of your sexual identity and orientation and preparing for life after graduation.
“The overwhelming number of directions we are pulled in contributes to depression,” said Bouzan. “We are all trying to balance so many different factors that it is difficult to be satisfied with all areas of our lives.”
Counseling Service’s professional staff work with students, often individually, to assist them in gaining a deeper understanding of the problem, exploring options and developing strategies for change and coping, said Birge.
“We provide more than just counseling,” she said.
Not only are counselors on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week to respond to a student in acute emotional distress, there is also on-site psychiatric care. The Renfrew Center, a nationally recognized and highly respected eating disorders treatment program, has forged an alliance with Fairfield University, said Birge.
Students agree that stress plays a major role in the onset of depressive illness.
“Stress contributes to the significant number of college students getting depressed,” said Ashley Lauro ’06. “Being overwhelmed, balancing a social life along with work and worrying about having a job are also factors.”
“The workload stresses me out a lot,” she added. “Finding a job when I graduate and choosing a career are added stressors.”
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