By: Catherine Tan

I flop onto my bed after dinner, scrolling mindlessly through my TikTok for-you-page—which right now is filled with the new Minions tren. I am utterly exhausted from my 9-5 internship. It’s only the summer after my freshman year of college and I’m already feeling the pressures of full adult corporate working life.

I wouldn’t consider myself extroverted, but I’m also not quite an introvert — I’ve thought my personality to be a healthy balance. But by the end of the day, my social battery is drained from networking, communicating, leading, and working. I haven’t talked to most of my college friends since the spring semester ended, yet I can’t seem to bring myself to message or call them to see what they’ve been up to. This summer, I get a glimpse of post-college depression, or at least some of the causes behind it. These feelings are rarely explicitly acknowledged and talked about by recent grads but seem to be a recurring topic whenever I’ve asked alumni about their college to work transition.

Distance, career, and the adult world drive a wrench between the college friends that we were always told would be friends for life — no one ever mentioned the effort both parties must put in for the friendship to continue thriving. Many college grads feel lonely, distant, and unmotivated, especially now. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 17% of young adults in 2020 have had at least one major depressive episode and the transition out of school serves as a common trigger. Student loan debt, the job hunt, and real-world affairs are other common factors that can lead to existential crises, on top of handling more freedom and independence, but not knowing what you want to do with your life (Dr. Lotes Nelson, a clinical mental health counseling faculty member at Southern New Hampshire University).

How can we deal with these overwhelming and tiring emotions? Clinical mental health counseling faculty at SNHU, Dr. Matt Glowiak and Dr. Nelson, have a few words of encouragement for struggling grads. First, seek help if you need it: access mental health databases to find professionals near you, start going to therapy, or simply talk to someone you trust. Start small but try to regularly catch up with and stay in touch with college friends. Short phone calls or weekly texts can maintain these friendships; it doesn’t have to be something big. Remember to set goals for yourself. If you’re not sure of long-term goals, try thinking about short term desires and purpose. It helps to be working towards something instead of living mundane days that seem to blend into each other over and over.

As college counseling faculty, Drs Glowiak and Nelson recommend taking advantage of other college career services and your alumni network. Work with career counselors or recruiters who can help you prepare for interviews, edit your resume, and develop career plans. Lastly, understand that these feelings are normal and actually very common. Remember that you were able to finish college, and that itself is a huge accomplishment. Take care of your mental and physical health and validate your feelings. Adjustment is always a tough change, and the college to workforce transition is the biggest step into adulthood, but you aren’t alone in this process – reach out when you need help and overcome this challenge.