A large majority of Faith Lutheran students are involved in at least one extra-curricular activity. Given the seven hours of school, two hours of an extracurricular activity, and multiple hours of homework, students spend a majority of their day occupied by what is considered their requirements. This does not even include someone who has more than one activity or the day to day activities of family dinners or appointments. This constant busyness becomes unhealthy for someone.

“The pressure and busyness of school take away time for me to spend with my family and friends, as I feel like I am always having to study and improve my grades,” says Hannah Propst, a FLHS Sophomore.

 When teenagers are moving and moving and are unable to get the rest they need, their mental health takes a hit. No one, let alone someone whose brain is still developing, can rely on six hours of sleep and caffeine. It just isn’t healthy.

On top of the constant strain of a schedule, students are under constant pressure to be the best at everything they take part in. The comparison game is a normal part of growing up, but college competition and high school pressures make this even worse for teens in this generation. Between trying to be on a varsity sports team, make top twenty-five in a class, and get college’s attention with extra-curriculars and service hours, students have so much competition in their minds that it is toxic to their health.

Being under a certain amount of pressure to be the best is healthy. It gives someone a motivation to work hard and reach their goals, however when all someone can think about is being the best at something, it becomes unhealthy. All this constant competition and pressure does is stress students out and give them a reason to stop doing what they love because all they can think about is how they are not the best, so what is the point for them to continue.

“The constant pressure put on us by the school and our parents is incredibly damaging and causes high rates of anxiety. Worrying about not only our future but also grades and extracurriculars is also extremely stressful,” says an anonymous FLHS Freshman.

In my opinion, all the busyness and pressure of high school is stressing students out and is not good for their mental state. Students are always busy and always working and when they aren’t busy with all the activities they are doing, they are thinking about their future and putting pressure on themselves to make it super great. I think with all of the other things on a student’s mind, their mental health is pushed down on the list and they let their state of mind slip until they are so stressed out they can hardly function. I have no idea what the solution is, but I think acknowledging the problem is a step in the right direction.