“If They Hit Me, I’ll Get Free Tuition”
Should we be concerned about the mental health of millennials?
By Lily Weber, Biology and English, 2023
It doesn’t take long after venturing onto any popular social media platform to fully grasp just how dark millennial humor has become. In fact, listening to any casual conversation among stressed out college students will inevitably yield humor of the same dark, nihilistic variety. Phrases such as “I want to die” or “This class makes me want to shoot myself” are tossed around with the same casual air that someone might inquire about the weather. This type of humor, so shocking and unseemly to older generations, has become commonplace among the millennials, and it’s not just surface level in its implications. Numerous recent studies into the mental health of this generation have yielded the same result: Millennial mental health is in serious decline.
Numerous recent studies into the mental health of this generation have yielded the same result: Millennial mental health is in serious decline.
In fact, a 2018 study conducted by Blue Cross Blue Shield into major depressive disorders revealed that as overall diagnoses of depression are rising, the rate of depression in millennials is rising even faster. According to the study, the rate of diagnosis for major depression in millennials has increased by up to 47 percent since 2013, compared to an increase of only 33 percent in the general population. Furthermore, Patalay et al in 2019 found evidence that younger millennials have come to exhibit higher instances of both depressive symptoms and self harming or suicidal behaviors. Clearly, millennial mental health is experiencing a serious downturn. The question that remains is why?
Various theories have been proposed to answer this very question. One such explanation relies on the simultaneously declining physical health of millennials. Physical and mental health are very much interconnected. In fact, the 2019 Patalay study also identified that millennials are getting less sleep and have higher body mass indexes, on average. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, those who experience chronic physical health issues are also at greater risk for depression. In other words, worsening physical health could be the root cause of higher rates of depression. The mind-body connection is undeniable. Perhaps worsening physical health has begun to take its toll on millennial mental health as well.
[One] study [of] major depressive disorders revealed that as overall diagnoses of depression are rising, the rate of depression in millennials is rising even faster.
Others blame the rise of social media for rising rates of depression. After all, millennials were among the first to grow up in the internet age. It may follow that this digital engagement has had a profoundly negative impact on their mental wellbeing. The ability to constantly compare oneself with others on social media outlets may lead millennials to feel increasingly dissatisfied with their own lives. A study conducted by Hunt et al in 2018 found that college students made to limit social media usage actually experienced profound decreases in both loneliness and depression. This demonstrates that the rise of social media as a part of our everyday lives may have inadvertently led to mental decline in some of the most tech-savvy of our population. Moreover, as social media content continues to reflect increased depression rates, it perpetuates the very environment that may have led to the increase in the first place.
Another potential cause for increased depression rates in millennials lies in the growing financial burden placed on this generation in particular. Millennials today are facing crippling student loan debt and weakening job stability. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, as of September 2019 national unemployment was at 3.5 percent. On the other hand, data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics puts millennial unemployment in the same time frame at 8 percent. The economy places a great deal of financial stress on millennials at a time when unemployment is looming. Just as suicide rates saw a sharp spike during the Great Depression, a similar occurrence may be taking place in current times.
Regardless of whether the true cause is one of these factors or some combination of the three, one fact remains clear: Millennials are depressed. While certain stressors are an inevitable part of life, whether we choose to let depression simply become an unfortunate aspect of millennial culture or decide to actively combat it is up to us, because while millennials may be among some of the least mentally and physically capable of the population, they are also a significant part of what makes up our future.
DOI: 10.1093/ije/dyz006