More Than Just a Day Off: Why Mental Health Days Matter for Students
By: Chloe Kennedy
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Mental health personal days are when students take a day off from school to rest and recharge, often for the sake of their emotional and mental well-being. These days help students manage stress and prevent burnout. They can improve focus and maintain better performance when students come back to school.
Many students need a day off to reset and regenerate their minds and bodies. According to the article, "7 Positive Effects of Taking Time Off for Mental Health" on Psychology Today, Joyce Marter from LCPC, explained, "Taking a day to shut down and then restart yourself will reboot your mind, body, and spirit." This helps lead to a good work balance and a fresh mind. Therefore, having a day off can improve students' focus and minds. Although too many days off can lead to a lack of motivation, one day off here and there can improve students' mental health greatly.
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Image from google
When students overwork their bodies and minds, it can lead to academic burnout. Having these days off once in a while can help prevent burnout. The article "Why mental health days are important for students" on Talkspace shares, "A mental health day can help by offering a vital break that lets kids take time off from their non-stop grind. A day away from schoolwork can reduce fatigue and restore energy levels, which are linked to burnout." Furthermore, students are constantly working on schoolwork to maintain their grades, but in doing so, it can drain all their energy and result in a lack of sleep. Students deserve to have days off to take a break from school.
The pressure on students, both academically and emotionally, is increasing and becoming more challenging. According to the article "Mental Health Days: Why Students Deserve a Break" from The Dragon Chronicle, it exclaims, "The pressure of classes can be intense, from tests and coursework to extracurricular activities and even social expectations. Surveys taken recently show that around 60% of students feel overwhelmed by their academic responsibilities." This pressure has a big impact on students' stress levels and mental health. The expectations on students, whether it is physical performance or getting good grades, can be mentally draining. Students are trying their best to maintain their busy schedules and deserve a personal day off once in a while.
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Images from google
Some people may think these mental health days will be misused by students and will be used as an excuse to skip school. Because of this, students need to be mature enough not to take advantage of it. The article, "Should Kids Take Mental Health Days?" from Child Mind Institute adds, "Skipping tests or hiding conflict ends up making the problem bigger, not better. And avoiding things that make kids anxious makes the anxiety worse." Therefore, using these days as an excuse would only add stress to students and make them feel more pressure.
In closing, if students do not get days off to improve their mental health, it can lead to burnout, more pressure, and it would not help their bodies recover. Many students are already struggling with mental health, and a few days off used appropriately can improve how they feel and act. In turn, they would improve academically, physically, and emotionally. We should consider giving these days to students who are in need.
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