Am I Okay?: A Quantitative Study on Self-Diagnoses Conducted on Mental Health Issues by Senior High School Students of St. Mary’s College Quezon City, S.Y. 2018-2019

Abstract

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte signed into law the “Philippine Mental Health Law.” The law would secure the rights and welfare of persons with mental health needs. College of Medicine professor Dr. Lourdes Ignacio (2017) stated, one in every three Filipinos has a mental health problem. Recent studies show that the prevalence of depression and stress were significantly higher among grade 12 students. This study determines the number of Senior High school students in St. Mary’s College, Quezon City, who perceived themselves as at risk of having mental health issues through self-diagnosis, and other means. The students will be informed of mental health issues within their groups, avoid trivializing mental health, and will realize that they will eventually seek professional help when they perceive that they are at risk. Guidance offices will be informed of the mental health issues among the Senior High School students, their need for assistance, and to recognize the likelihood for students to be affected by mental health issues. The study used a descriptive quantitative design. The study utilized surveys for data collection. The data was gathered from the total population of 189 Senior High school students of St. Mary’s College Quezon City. Nominal scale and descriptive statistical frequency count was used for analyzing data. 110 out of 189 Senior High school students perceive themselves as at risk of having mental health issues through self-diagnosis. The most common problem, as self-diagnosed by the students, is Anxiety with 76. The students’ basis of assessment for their self-diagnosis is Self-Perception. The most significant factor that affected the students’ self-diagnosis is Psychological Knowledge. The prominent way of managing one’s health is sharing one’s problem. This study concludes that the majority of the Senior High School students perceived themselves as being at risk of having a mental health issue. The Senior High School students indicated that their most common perceived mental health issue is Anxiety, which was also mentioned in the study of Michaud (2005). The most common factor that affected their self-diagnosis was Psychological Knowledge, based on the study of Samuel et al. (2017), which indicated that their knowledge in psychology encouraged them to self-diagnosis. The researchers recommend future researchers to have a bigger sample size with junior high school students. Furthermore, focusing on how managing one’s mental health affects their mental health.