With increasing pressure and standards set by society, college students are suffering from immense stress.
“The feeling that I haven’t done well enough is constant,” said Sydney Cottingham, LSU sophomore.
There is a constant pressure to be “the best.” It is no longer good enough to get good grades. You also have to score well on standardized tests, said Katrina Lenz, LSU Student Health Center Doctoral Psychology Intern. You have to participate in multiple extracurricular activities too and have a job to pay for all of it.
“It’s become a very competitive place,” Lenz said. “So there’s a lot of pressure to again not only do well, but to be ‘the best.’”
 Because of this, students begin to believe they won’t succeed if they aren’t perfect, forcing students to believe they are never good enough.
This stress has created an environment where learning is no longer fun. Instead students just cram for tests, forgetting the material after. Many feel they never truly retain the information they are taught.
“I used to absolutely love learning,” Cottingham said. “Now I do what I have to do to get the grade on the test.”
Not only does this affect the way a student learns, but some notice adverse effects on their physical and mental health.
“I get sick more often because I’m stressed,” Cottingham said.  “I’m not sleeping. I’m not eating well. I used to get so nervous I’d get physically ill.”
Other students become so anxious, stressed and/or depressed they seek outside help from friends or therapists.
This is very common among students, said Lenz. However, she believes a student’s mental health should be more important than their grades and academic success.
“I have to believe that your mental health is the most important because if you’re not taking care of yourself physically and mentally, you’re not going to be able to perform the way that you want and get the grades that you want.”
While students know this is true, they often sacrifice their health in order to make the grade.
“I would like to say that mental health and physical health should be the priority, but from personal experience that’s not the case,” Cottingham said. “I definitely prioritize my school over my health.”
Are all these sacrifices worth it in the end? And where is the fine line between the importance of health and academic success?
“Where is that line?” Cottingham asked. “I don’t think you know until you hit the breaking point, and that’s a scary gamble to take.”
There are ways of coping with this pressure and anxiety.
 “Self-care is one of the most important things,” said Lenz. This includes getting enough sleep, nutrition and exercise. Other ways of coping, Lenz said, are spending time with other people and visiting the mental health center for help.