Mental health is a struggle around the world. According to the Mental Health Association (MHA), a study researching mental health around the world, found at least 20% of the people in the whole world deal with mental health issues. That percentage may seem small but it is equivalent to 1 billion people. 

There are many different types of mental health issues clinical depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, and many others.

Depression can be difficult to manage with symptoms including sadness, anger, hopelessness, tiredness, lack of motivation, loss of interest in many things, feeling worthless, harm of oneself, and suicidal thoughts. 

Anxiety symptoms include being on edge, wound-up, having trouble sleeping, staying still, sweating, trembling, and worrying about little things. 

Jessica Walker, School Intervention Specialist, is in her second year, helping out some students and teaching them coping skills and better ways to deal with certain situations. 

“I work with high school age students who deal with mental health, emotional, and behavioral issues. I provide effective interventions to use coping skills and social skills,” said Walker. 

Walker shares her advice on ways to manage your stress and mental health struggles.

“The best way to manage that certainly depends on the individual. Each person has different things that help deal with stress. My favorite thing to do is listen to music and another thing that really helps us talk to someone I trust,” said Walker. 

Walker shares how she gets to make her students comfortable and feel safe.

“One of the most important parts of this job is building a good relationship with the students. Gaining their trust is huge and showing them that you care about what is going on in their life helps them feel comfortable to open up and share,”

Presley Brzostek is a freshman at Rockbridge County High School. 

“If you have a lot going on, you need to make time for yourself to take a breath. You always come first and taking care of yourself is the most important thing. Take time away from the chaos and do something that brings you joy,” said Brzostek. “Having someone to talk things through and listen, can make a greater impact than you think. Again, find something you love to do, or even try new things. It’s amazing how you can discover different aspects of yourself and grow from new experiences,”

Junior Victoria Dorey shares her tips on mental health. 

“I feel like a lot of schoolwork and no breaks can affect someone’s mental health. Also the constant pressure to always do your best at school with no exceptions from teachers,” said Dorey. “When someone is dealing with an issue I feel that you should not invalidate their feelings at all, everyone handles things differently and they are valid,” 

             Bella Dorey is a freshman at RCHS. 

“Your mindset. If you have a really down and negative mindset, that could be one major thing that will keep affecting one’s health,” The last question asked was what are some tips for students or anyone dealing with stress or how to cope with it, she said “A method of coping that I use is listening to music and going to the gym. By going to the gym it helps me relieve stress. A tip that I could give is to do things that make you happy and do them on a daily basis. Doing things that make you happy relieves stress.”