Depression, Anxiety, and the Ivy League

I’m currently in tenth grade and I have been diagnosed with depression and anxiety. These problems have made my freshman and sophomore years of high school very problematic- I’ve only been involved in one real extracurricular (symphony orchestra) and my GPA at the end of this semester will be 3.63. Additionally, I dropped a math class this semester due to my depression. I feel really overwhelmed and I really want to know what I can do : (

Why the Ivy League? Why can’t you do your best and then pick schools that fit YOU and your stats?

So sorry you are having a hard time, my son went through the same. He did graduate but it was a struggle to work through while he was so down and discouraged. He chose a college where he fit in and felt less stress academically - still working hard and happier now. Check out a book called Colleges That Change Lives. Your guidance counselor will have a copy.

@Snowdog thank you, I’ll have to check it out :slight_smile:

Life does get better after high school. It’s hard to picture when you are overwhelmed. Hang in there.

I have anxiety, ADHD, and family problems that sometimes bar me from schoolwork. I would recommend talking to your counselor or teachers and seeing what they can do. I talked to my counselor about my problems and she sent an email to my teachers; all my teachers have given me some leniency on my schoolwork.

If your coursework is too much for you, you can take lower level/intensity classes, drop classes, and, if available, have a free period to manage your work.

There is also the option of home school, if you really can’t manage your schoolwork, though this is definitely something that you should review with you parents and/or counselor.

Regarding Ivy League and college, when you send your application, make a note of the problems that you were having and how it impacted your grades at that time. They might make leniency if they see your grades have improved junior and senior year, but, of course, if your grades have not improved by then, there might be applicants that they’d rather have accepted. Remember that colleges look for quality over quantity, especially Ivy League and its competitors - if you can excel in a few honor or AP classes then opt for that instead of having, say, 4 AP and 3 honor classes.

Right now, just focus on your mental and emotional health, as that is the most important thing. Try finding some thing that you love doing and invest in it - when I had depression or whenever I have some sort attack, I usually would pull out some earbuds and read and that would distract me from whatever happened. I play violin and over the summer I participate in a strings summer camp and during the school year I play in my local youth symphony orchestra. During the school year I also participate in extracurricular activities/clubs, though I know that might be hard for someone with anxiety (mine isn’t severe to a point where I avoid any interaction - I usually participate in clubs that have less that 20 people or that have my friends in it).

I know how hard it is to be a student with depression - when I had it, my grades tanked. During that time, I worked to my guidance counselor to start prioritizing my goals. My grades started going up right after I started picturing my life right after high school, and that gave me the drive to do my schoolwork.

I hope your situation lets up. Just have your goal in mind and just start working for it. If you really want it, push yourself and drive yourself toward your goal, one step at a time, one assignment at a time. That is how I managed to get out of my depression and how I cope right now, and it really does work :slight_smile: