How Being Back To In-Person is Affecting Mental Health

Coming back to school full time, after the year of hybrid, is a changeling time for a multitude of reasons. Students now are back to waking up at 6:30AM. Many will stress about getting good grades. Some students have to get homework done every single night on top of extracurricular activities.

It also may be challenging to a freshman who is learning all about NHS now, after 18 months of virtual and hybrid instruction.  Freshman Ava Costanzo, says  “So far this school year has been an interesting and different experience.” 

Ava refers to her mental health during covid as a difficult thing to deal with. Having to do school virtually and only going in person for three months wasn’t the best situation for her. “It was very hard to focus in class while we were online,” she says. “My phone was right next to me the whole time and I was always tempted to go on it.” Ava felt discouraged, always wanting to go on her devices and not being able to properly focus in class. Another aspect that was difficult to virtual school was having to stare at a computer screen for the majority of the day. “I even got bad migraines from looking at my screen for so long,” she states. 

Coming back to in-person school was like a breath of fresh air for Ava.“My mental health has gotten better, surprisingly, with being able to get back to school full time. Yes, there are some aspects that are stressful for example the work, but I tend to look at the positive view.” Ava insists on having a positive outlook on being back to school has really affected her grades in a great way. 

As Ava entered high school, the pressure was on her to get good grades.  In previous school years, your grades did not matter as much as they do now. She felt immense pressure on her to have a successful school year. “I put so much pressure on myself because I want to be able to succeed in life and make a lot of money.” 

The most demanding part of being in-person for Ava is the larger workload and getting good grades. Coming from middle school, she isn’t familiar with the amount of homework she receives. On top of that Ava participates in extracurricular activities such as Cross Country and a few clubs. “Some of my homework is graded on accuracy which my fellow freshmen and I are not used to. But I try hard and strive to do the best I can,” Ava said.

Instead of having a difficult return to school Ava has changed her experience to a better one. She is striving to get good grades in her classes. “I’m really enjoying school at the moment and hope it stays this way,” Ava states.