Mental health is a big issue in today’s society, especially in teenagers. Due to remote learning and quarantine, it has put a lot of stress and anxiety on students in high school. Being at home all the time can put a toll on you because of being on social media, watching tv, or talking to friends on the phone instead of seeing them in person is lonely. Remote learning can be stressful because of how different it is compared to in person learning. The pandemic has changed all of our lives in different ways, just like the way we learn or how we get to work.

Dean of students Jennifer Piotrowicz works with many students in the building. She’s more than a dean; she builds genuine relationships with students. She’s not there just to give punishments and talk about behavior, rather she’s there to support students. Piotrowicz connects with students and talks about what’s going on in their daily lives, to help students with mental health problems. 

Piotrowicz said, “You need to try to find one person, one adult in the building that you are safe with, that you have a relationship with, that you respect that you’re comfortable with. And that’s kind of your person, right? So we encourage that, and it could be anybody, can be a coach, could be a teacher, it could be a hall monitor, it could be a dean, a counselor, classroom teacher, whatever.” 

Many teens have a hard time seeking out for help when they are dealing with depression, stress, or anxiety. Most times, kids keep whatever they are going through to themselves because it just seems easier than talking to someone who may or may not get what they are talking about or what they’re going through.

After speaking with students and their concerns, Piotrowicz said, “I always reach out to the parents letting them know if students have concerns. You know, I talked to a lot of kids, but again, I’m not a licensed professional in that realm, so I do what I can to support the students, the best that I can. But for the most part, I would always for sure if I feel that, you know, students are in danger of possibly hurting themselves or hurting somebody else or, you know, they’re really in a fog, I would absolutely follow up with the parents, just to make sure that they’re safe.”

People have different ways on how they cope with their mental health, some good ways and some bad ways. Not everyone has access to talk to people to talk to, but at Central, students do have people to talk to. Lots of people need somebody to vent to get things off their mind. Venting and talking to somebody about what you’re going through prevents people from harming their mental health further.

Piotrowicz said, “Just trying to find a trusted adult or a trusted friend, and not ignoring things that are going on… There’s always going to be somebody out there that can help and not to be afraid to ask for help, and again, just knowing that it’s not a sign of weakness.”

In today’s society, mental health is a big problem within teenagers because of social media and the changes in school because of remote learning. Learning how to take care of your mental health is important for a healthy lifestyle because life is stressful, and it will always hit you with challenges that you think you can’t handle, but being strong and having a good support system always helps.