The summer is coming to an end, and that normally means back to school. This is the time of year in which college-aged young adults are typically excited to get back on campus. As COVID-19 persists, college students are having to navigate choosing between remote classes and being on a campus that is drastically different than what they are used to. Incoming college Freshman, in particular, are preparing to start school in a completely different environment than they had expected or hoped for. As the school year approaches, we can expect to see increased mental health concerns in college students. We need to prepare ourselves for meeting the mental health demands of this population as college counseling centers will likely not have enough resources to meet all the demands. Some issues the college counseling centers are facing include having too few providers to meet with enough students on a regular basis, not having providers licensed in the states students are living in while they take remote classes, and not being able to see students on a weekly or biweekly basis due to overwhelming demand for services. The need for additional community support will be high and we need to prepare ourselves for the issues facing these college communities.
Some issues we can anticipate students experiencing include:
Increase in feelings of loneliness and isolation from lack of social opportunities on campus or remotely
Feelings of hopelessness related to the pandemic ending or improving
COVID-19 related anxiety (i.e. wearing masks, contracting COVID-19, COVID-19 shutting down campus, etc.)
Anxiety related to learning on online platforms or in-person
Depression related related to missing out on the typical college experience
Social anxiety related to navigating developing friendships in a socially distant world
Increased symptoms of OCD
Sharing dorm rooms and navigating COVID-19 with roommates
Increased use of maladaptive coping skills (i.e. alcohol, drugs, self-harm, impulsive behavior, food restriction, binge eating, over-exercising, etc)
Increased feelings of death and suicidal ideation
Our college students are in need of support and that need will continue to increase as the school year begins and progresses. As mental health professionals, we can take an active response by making ourselves available to college campuses as additional sources of support for students and faculty. We can work with our current clients attending college by helping them create adaptive coping skills and develop support networks prior to starting class. We can offer reduced fee sessions and volunteer to lead support groups during this time of need. To learn more about how college campuses may be impacted by COVID-19, check out the following articles:
APA: A Crunch at College Counseling Centers
Psych Central: COVID-19 Shown to Heighten College Stress
APA: How to Encourage Student Self-Care
ABC News: No Parties, No Trips: Colleges set COVID-19 rules for Fall