Academic Pressure

Society marks the value of a child largely based on their academic performance. This is extremely burdensome on the child, as artistic/non-academic achievements and interests are overlooked and belittled. The unequivocal prominence that is given to academics is a major cause of teen suicide. If you feel that your academic stress situation has gotten out of hand, it’s always okay to ask for professional help and consult a mental health professional.

Academic stress is the body’s response to academic-related matters and demands that exceed the adaptive capabilities of students.

In 2018, statistics showed that in India one student committed suicide every hour on average. It was the highest rate in a decade in the nation. Parental pressure on course and career choices is seen by experts as a major stress factor for teens and young adults.

Whom does it affect?

It majorly affects students from high school and university. Students often face academic stress. Students with learning disabilities like Dyscalculia, ADHD, Dyslexia, etc. Have been hidden victims of academic pressure in many cases. Their disabilities tend to go unnoticed by their mentors, peers and parents, and the bars are set too high for their adaptive capabilities.

How does someone get academically stressed?

Some causes of academic stress may be heavy academic workload, poor physical classroom environment, the need to succeed, pressure from parents etc.

Another significant cause is setting the bar too high. We tend to set goals that are unachievable and when we can’t complete the task, we get frustrated and flustered.

How do you deal with academic stress?

1. Making to-do lists

2. Follow the classic reward system

3. Exercise- Physical fitness is scientifically proven to make people happier and less anxious

4. Take a mental health day- take a day to relax and clear your mind void of all the stressful thoughts.

Why is it a serious problem?

The body’s reaction to academic-related matters can be physical, psychological and emotional.

It could lead to self-harm, developing anorexia, anxiety, etc. The biggest of them all is students developing suicidal thoughts, which are a result of depression and anxiety. If professional help isn’t asked for when needed, things could get out of hand.

The day before or after an exam is the time during which most students commit suicide.

The moment they fail to score well, society labels them as failures. This puts an immense amount of pressure and stress on them. Since failing an exam would mean that they have no chance to prove their worth as society has already labelled them as failures. People overlook the fact that stress is a problem and what's worse is that most teenagers have no clue how to cope up with it. As a research study by Mission Australia found that almost 40 per cent of 15- to 19-year-olds are very concerned about their ability to cope with stress.

Many people push teenagers and put huge amounts of stress on them. They do this as they believe their constant badgering will incite the child to do better. The reality is that this does not work for everyone. This process of negatively putting astounding amounts of responsibility on the child will only cause them to take dire/harmful decisions.

Written by: Ayra Kamal and Writers at Just A Teen