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By Kary Deng
For some students, the hardest part of the school day isn’t a test or homework, it is getting through the weight of depression.
In classrooms filled with laptops, lockers, and college ambitions, depression is tightening its grip on the youth of America. Although the opioid crisis is often framed as a problem of street drugs and adult addiction, it begins much earlier, and much closer to home, with untreated depression.
As mental health struggles rise among students, opioids have become a dangerous coping mechanism, shaping a silent public health emergency within schools.
Over the past few years, the prevalence of depression in schools has been on the rise. According to a 2023 Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Youth Risk Behavior Study, two in five high-schoolers report persistent feelings of sadness and hopelessness. Experts attribute this to a variety of factors including academic pressure, social media standards, family stress, and a lack of mental health resources.
When these pressures accumulate without adequate support for students, it often leaves the student unable to process these emotions through healthy means.
When mental health struggles are left alone, without any attention from others, young students feel encouraged to turn to opioids to temporarily ease their sadness.
An article written by Molly Triffin for Teen Vogue shares a story of a student, Mike, who was originally prescribed opioids to treat his constant headaches. As the days went on, Mike depended on opioids to relieve his depression as well as his headaches. Within days, he consumed his entire prescription and began acquiring additional pills from peers, selling his belongings to afford his addiction, and increasing his usage.
The more he relied on opioids to temporarily numb his depressive symptoms, the more he was encouraged to transition to cheaper heroin, as well. Unfortunately, Mike’s story isn’t unique. Mike’s story reflects a broader pattern where students self medicate untreated mental health struggles, increasing the risk of substance dependence. His story mirrors a growing national trend of increased youth abusing opioids.
Studies conducted further the connection between depression and opioid misuse among adolescents. Results from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health found that adolescents with a history of depression, when compared to those without depression, had a 1.5 times increased risk for prescription opioid misuse.
These studies and stories of people like Mike show that depression often precedes opioid misuse rather than occurring as a consequence of substance use.
The growing trend between depression and opioid misuse reinforce the importance of offering mental health support for students and communities. When students are provided with timely access to counseling services and adequate support systems, they are less likely to seek relief from dangerous substances. Mental health programs can serve as an important intervention to identify students at risk before emotional distress results in substance dependence.
By investing in accessible and comprehensive mental health resources for students, schools and policymakers can reduce reliance on opioids and protect students from their own emotions. Ultimately, a big part of preventing opioid misuse lies in providing resources to help youth with their mental health.
This article was written as part of a program to educate youth and others about Alameda County’s opioid crisis, prevention and treatment options. The program is funded by the Alameda County Behavioral Health and the grant is administered by Three Valleys Community Foundation.
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