How To Be An Adult: University Offering A Program To Help Students Deal With The Stress Of Adulthood

A university in Greenville, North Carolina has organized a program for students who might need more guidance in becoming an adult. School authorities at the East Carolina University (ECU) believe that this program is crucial, especially after learning that more and more college students are demanding counseling and similar support services inasmuch as many of them are apparently having a hard time dealing with the stress and challenges of adulthood.

Spearheaded by the university counseling staff, the program called RIO (Recognition, Insight and Openness) will include activities like journaling, stress management and support groups with teachers and students, according to NBC News. It will hopefully teach the students about becoming resilient and impart to them much-needed life skills.

Based on a report from the ECU in coming up with the program, there was an increase in counseling appointments in the school in the least two years at 16 percent. Students who admitted to being involved in a crisis were also up by 52 percent. "It wasn't just the numbers, it was the intensity and severity," said Valerie Kisler-van Reede, the school's counseling director via the NBC News report. As conveyed by Reflector, the authorities also saw a spike in drug use in the campus, which has been attributed to how students handle anxiety, a feeling of being overwhelmed and stressed.

It's not just the ECU, nevertheless, that has noticed the increasing and alarming trend among college kids. The Penn State also did their survey of students in relation to mental health. More than half admitted they might require counseling or are experiencing stress and anxiety.

Experts believe that social media and technology have also contributed to the emotional and mental health decline of some of these students. No longer equipped at handling issues face-to-face, students are also incapable of solving conflicts properly. They are also constantly exposed to what they see from their friends on social media, which are mostly edited posts and shares about good fortune or successes. Some fail to see that many of these "achievements" underwent so many struggles and failures before the end result happened.