Should You Get a Mental Health Day?

Ebbie: Imagine your mind is a balloon. Every time you have a negative thought or stressful experience, water is added to the balloon. If too much water is put into the balloon, it will eventually burst. A day off from school, whether you spend it taking a walk, watching a favorite movie, talking to a parent or therapist, or just getting some extra sleep, is a great way to release water from the balloon before it pops. Additionally, having mental health be a legitimate reason to miss school would help raise awareness of the importance of the issue. Both students and school administrators would see mental wellness as something that is as critical as physical health, and there would be less stigma around asking for help. Giving students a day off for mental health would help them thrive both in and out of the classroom.

William: I agree that mental health is a serious issue, but I don’t think that telling students to stay home if they’re having a mental health crisis is the way to address the problem. By letting students stay home, schools would essentially be telling them to handle their struggles on their own. This could be dangerous, especially if the student spends the day alone when they are already feeling vulnerable. Being isolated could make the problem worse, and might even lead the student to self-harm. A mental health crisis is a time when you most need support, which you could get at school from counselors and trained professionals. Instead of giving students one mental health day, schools should provide services to help students manage their stress in school every day, while also working to reduce the stress factors created by school itself.