Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/569858
Davis, who has worked for 20 years in a counseling capacity w i t h i n s c h o o l s , s ays t h e re h a s been a noticeable increase in anx- iety among teens. Her office serves students at Apollo High School, an alternative campus Chavez attends, as well as the adjoining traditional Overfelt High School. "Ten years ago I would rarely have students coming in complaining of symp- toms of anxiety," says Davis. "But now it's a daily occurrence." Others have also noticed the trend. "When I first began my career, stu- dent anxiety wasn't something I came across often," says Shannon Abono, Lib- erty Education Association, a counselor at Liberty High School in Brentwood. "But in the last seven years, anxiety lev- els have spiked." Due to anxiety, she says, many stu- dents cannot succeed in regular school and end up attending alternative schools for at-risk youth. "I am not alone in thinking this. The subject is debated and discussed with my co-workers and colleagues more and more." Anxiety disorders have resulted in more students are being placed on 504 and IEP plans, says Abono. (Section 504 of the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973 requires the needs of students with disabilities be met as adequately as the needs of the nondisabled. An individualized education program, IEP, is required for every student in special education.) "They usually start with a complaint of a physical ailment such as a stomach or headache," says Karen Cloutman, a school nurse for San Diego Unified School District. "When the complaint is further investigated, you find out there are other issues such as 'problems at home' or 'lack of sleep.' Many will never use the word 'anxi- ety,' but their body language tells you they are anxious." These students need a safe place to go, says Cloutman, San Diego Education Asso- ciation (SDEA). Unlike adults, they can't just get up and take a break during the day if they are feeling anxious. "We allow them some time in the health office to calm down before they are sent back to class. Our goal is to make them feel comfortable so they can learn." Sometimes a nurse calls parents, only to learn that the student has already been diagnosed with a n a n x i e t y d i s o r d e r, s h e r e l a t e s . But the parents may not have notified t h e s c h o o l t o a v o i d t h e i r c h i l d b e i n g " l a b e l e d ." O t h e r p a r e n t s s u s p e c t s o m e - thing is wrong with their child, but lack the resources to have them evaluated. Kristin Makena, senior school psychologist for San Diego Unified School District, finds the trend of rising anxiety among students to be alarming. "We're seeing a lot of anxiety disorders starting early on in kindergarten right up through high school," says Makena, who is also an SDEA member. "It's a concern that needs to be addressed in the schools." The problem is also increasing at the college level, says Heather Web- ster-Henry, a marriage and family therapist at CSU San Bernardino. "When I first started here, I saw a lot more depression, but that has switched to anxiety," says the California Faculty Association member, who works in the university's THRIVE program to pro- mote mental health. The center holds an Overcoming Anxiety group for students who meet regularly, says Webster-Henry, who defines anxiety as "being self-conscious, or feeling a sense of unworthiness, or having a sense of something that inhibits them from engaging other people and taking risks." ANXIETY IS ON THE RISE Jeanine Davis, social worker at Apollo High School in San Jose, talks with student Alicia Chavez in her office. "IN THE LAST SEVEN YEARS, ANXIETY LEVELS HAVE SPIKED." SHANNON ABONO Shannon Abono 31 V O LU M E 2 0 I S S U E 2