Depression in Students

WASHINGTON — Stress over grades. Financial worries. Trouble sleeping. Feeling hopeless.

So much for those carefree college days.

The majority of college students are feeling stressed these days, and significant numbers are at risk of depression, according to an Associated Press-mtvU poll. Eighty-five percent of the students reported feeling stress in their daily lives in recent months, with worries about grades, schoolwork, money and relationships the big culprits.

At the same time, 42 percent said they had felt down, depressed or hopeless several days during the past two weeks, and 13 percent showed signs of being at risk for at least mild depression, based on the students’ answers to a series of questions that medical practitioners use to diagnose depressive illness.

These students complained of trouble sleeping, having little energy or feeling down or hopeless — and most hadn’t gotten professional help.

Kristin Potts, who graduated from Penn State last week with a 4.0 in chemistry and will go on for a master’s, says she’s seen warning signs.

"I had a couple friends who didn’t come out of their rooms very much,” she said. "I tried my hardest not to be like that, but I definitely saw it.”

Mental health disorders like depression typically begin relatively early in life, doctors say, and college is a natural time for symptoms to emerge.

The poll was conducted April 22 to May 4 and involved interviews with 2,240 undergraduate students ages 18-24 at four-year colleges. To protect privacy, the schools where the poll was conducted are not being identified. The poll has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.


by the associated press