{"id":162080,"date":"2023-12-05T10:15:54","date_gmt":"2023-12-05T09:15:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=162080"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:27:05","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:27:05","slug":"mental-wellbeing-students-slightly-improved-but-still-worrying","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2023\/12\/05\/mental-wellbeing-students-slightly-improved-but-still-worrying\/","title":{"rendered":"Mental wellbeing students slightly improved, but still worrying"},"content":{"rendered":"

One in four students find themselves weary of life every now and then and one in six is a heavy drinker, a new monitor has revealed. And yet, students\u2019 mental wellbeing is slightly better than two years ago.<\/p>\n

For the second time, thousands of students have been asked about their mental health and their use of alcohol and drugs. Once again, a significant portion indicated they have psychological complaints, and substance use hasn\u2019t changed much either.<\/p>\n

The first measurement took place in 2021, right in the middle of the lockdown motivated by the third COVID wave. The report by the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), the Trimbos Institute and the municipal health services made a huge impact. The results were very worrying, the then cabinet thought.<\/p>\n

This time<\/a> there was no lockdown and some results are looking a bit better again. Two years ago, more than half (51 percent) were having depressive or anxiety complaints, compared to 44 percent this time around. Loneliness has dropped from 79 to 62 percent.<\/p>\n

Equally urgent<\/h2>

This improvement \u2018is of course good news\u2019, think outgoing Minister of Education Robbert Dijkgraaf and State Secretary for Health Maarten van Ooijen, but they also believe the problem is still \u2018equally urgent\u2019.<\/p>\n

The Dutch National Students\u2019 Association (ISO) doesn\u2019t see any reason to celebrate either. \u201cThis survey has once again set off all the alarm bells\u201d, says chair Demi Janssen. She would like for higher education institutions to be given a legal duty to care for students, similar to the one schools have for their pupils.<\/p>\n

Incidentally, that one in four students has been \u2018tired of life\u2019 at one moment or another doesn\u2019t mean all of these students are suicidal. The question was whether, in the four weeks leading up to the survey, they ever wished they were dead or would go to sleep and not wake up. That may be a temporary feeling, the researchers say. Only four percent of respondents feel this way \u2018most of the time\u2019 or \u2018almost always\u2019.<\/p>\n\t

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Are you having suicidal thoughts? You can contact 0800-0113 for free and anonymously 24\/7, or chat at 113.nl<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\t<\/div>\n

Alcohol and drugs<\/h2>

Alcohol consumption continues to be a problem amongst students. One in nine (11 percent) never drinks, but out of all the rest, 39 percent are \u2018risky\u2019 drinkers: they sometimes feel sorry afterwards, are sometimes advised to drink less or are unable to meet their obligations due to their alcohol consumption. Another 4 percent may have an addiction problem.<\/p>\n

Drug use has roughly stayed the same. 21 percent of all students has taken XTC and 14 percent did so in the past year. For cocaine, the percentages are 12 and 7 respectively.<\/p>\n\n\t

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