Panther Prints | Issue 4 | May 2020

12 • Feature PESHPRINTS.COM
Coping at home
Students deal with mental health amid pandemic
by Gracie Warhust
ollowing Gov. Greg Abbott’s order for
FTexans to stay at home except for essential
activities from March 31 to April
30, teenagers and adults alike faced a
period of isolation. People started staying
home before this order, according to
FiveThirtyEight, lengthening this confinement
further. Combined with business
closures and other COVID-19 safety measures,
those with and without previous
mental health difficulties had to find new
resources to cope with their struggles.
“I believe that people have been affected
in lots of different ways, however,
specifically people that are used to
having certain types of distractions or
[compensating] for any of their anxiety
or depression symptoms with things outside
of their home,” licensed professional
counselor (LPC) Pare Underwood said.
Underwood believes the most important
thing for teenagers to develop
is a peer group and friendships, and in
times like these when physical get-togethers
are limited, the lack of contact
can be harmful.
“It’s not like I’m 100 percent completely
fine because then again you can’t really
see anybody during this time, so you just
get lonely every now and then,” senior
Jacob Oliver said. “Extroverts or people
that want to go out to see people, they
try to fill that void with something to do
so that they’re not just stuck at home not
doing anything, [but] as soon as you get
off the game or hang up the call you kind
of just look around and realize that nobody’s
around you and you’re alone.”
Psychology Today reports that faceto-face
social interaction decreases
the likelihood of depressive symptoms.
For students, this could include attending
school, extracurricular activities and
sports practices.
“I’ve been a lot more under the weather
not only because I miss my friends but
also because school was my distraction
from my thoughts and stress,” junior
Charles Igbo said. “Also I’m missing my
activities and getting to perform with my
friends, so overall it’s just made me a little
more upset about things.”
Senior Isabella Escobedo dealt with
personal struggles before the pandemic
and saw a therapist to cope with
them. After her therapist’s office closed,
there were limited options to proceed
with counseling, such as phone or
Zoom sessions.
“I think that really took a toll on me
because then I felt like I wasn’t talking as
much and I wasn’t sharing how I was feeling
as much with the people around me,”
Escobedo said.
For teenagers living at home, attending
a therapy session online may not hold
the same efficacy as in-person sessions.
While there may be upsides, such as convenience
and being in a familiar place,
there are also serious cons such as a lack
of response to crisis situations and confidentiality
issues, according to Very Well
Mind. Escobedo attributed some issues
to technology use and being uncomfortable
that an outside party would overhear
the conversation.
“It was helpful finally talking to her
again and kind of picking up where we
left off,” Escobedo said. “[But] I see how
some people may feel like they can’t
say everything they want to say [over
the phone].”
According to Psychology Today, time
away from work and school, at least for
Senior Jacob Oliver plays a video game in his room
May 15. Oliver found activities to do at home in accordance
to Gov. Greg Abbot’s stay-at-home order.
Photo by Gracie Warhurst
a short amount of time, may help relieve
some stress for certain people. In addition,
Psych Central reports that a lack
of distractions can help one focus on
positive feelings.
“It’s kind of both like a weight off because
now we have online classes and I
can just not care about school [as much]
anymore,” Oliver said. “It’s not like you
have something to do every single day.
You can kind of put it off.”
Underwood believes those who have
had fewer issues with mental health
during this time have healthy relationships
at home with their family and are
naturally lower on the stress spectrum,
experiencing less big life changes or feelings
of anxiety.
“A lot of the people that are stressed
with finances or jobs or are in the middle
of a divorce or adoption or any of those
types of family things, it has affected
them a lot more,” Underwood said. “I think
[parental stress] kind of trickles down to
the teens and the teens don’t have as
[many] resources.”
For those continuing to struggle with
feelings of loneliness or decreased mental
health during this time of social distancing,
Very Well Mind recommends sticking
to a daily schedule, thinking of ways
to meaningfully connect with loved ones
from a distance and finding safe sources
of comfort.
“I think that you kind of miss the aspect
of people asking how you’re doing at
school,” Escobedo said. “You know, you
miss that aspect of your teachers noticing
that something’s a little off or a place
where sometimes you talk about how
you’re feeling or what’s going on, and I
feel like you’re missing that.”