Impact of Mental Health on Students’ Academic Performance 

By Ameerah Junaid, Folasayo Oyawale, Azeezat Olatunde, and Emmanuel Makinde 

For many students, the classroom is not only a place for learning – it’s also a battleground for their mental well-being. Mental health challenges, though often invisible, profoundly affect academic performance. But how can we help students overcome this silent struggle?

“It’s always frustrating, working very hard since the beginning of every semester, only to have grades that don’t match my preparation.” 

Those were the disheartening words of Aishat, a UNILAG student of Biochemistry. She narrated her experience battling with mental health conditions and how it affected her grades.

“It happens like my heart will fall into pieces whenever I’m in the exam hall; no matter how much I read, my whole body is likely conflicting with my brain. I get the papers, then I panic or get too anxious by the time I get myself together. It’s almost time up already,” she said, shakily.

According to her, she had always been a perfect student, aced her tests, and participated actively in other school activities. But changed after she was admitted into the university.

“I first noticed it during my first year: the fear of not meeting up with my usual expectations and the stress that comes with adjusting to school life. I was overwhelmed. That was when I knew my mental health was declining,” she explained, her words carrying the weight of her distress. “I began to lose focus in class. Making friends became difficult for me, which is unusual because I used to be sociable.” 

Just like Aishat, many other students are battling silently with mental health conditions, waiting to be heard. 

According to a study carried out by the World Health Organization (WHO), it was estimated that 20% of Nigerians or about 40 million people are affected by mental illness. 

Another interesting study by the Mental Health Foundation revealed that about 20% of youths may experience mental health challenges within a given year. 50% of mental health disorders are established by the age of 14 and 75% by the age of 25, and over 75% of young people who are experiencing mental health disorders are far from getting the help they truly need. 

What is mental health? 

According to Mr Oscar Victor, a clinical psychologist and a lecturer at UNILAG, Mental health is the understanding of how your mind works and how healthy your mind is.

Mr Victor drew a parallel between one’s physical and mental states.

“There’s a dichotomy between your physical health and your mental health. While your physical health has to do with your body organs, mental health has to do with your cognitive processes and how they shape your personality and make you who you are. It’s the driver that shows why we do what we do.” 

Mental Health and Academics

There’s also a direct impact between one’s mental health conditions and academic performance. Conditions like anxiety, stress, depression, etc can interfere with one’s overall learning abilities, consequently shaping the outcome of the academic performance of a student. 

For example, a student who’s experiencing a test or exam anxiety can become overwhelmed, which always results in hyperventilation, heavy breathing, and sometimes cases of blanking out from what had been read because, then, the brain overdrives by trying to make such student relax, while also struggling to retain what had been read. 

And just like Aishat’s case, by the time the student relaxes, there’s only a little time to do with, which causes poor results. 

Looking forward 

Healthy mental health is crucial for better academic performance. To proffer a workable solution, we all must recognise that the state of our mind is vital and worth paying attention to. 

When asked about potential solutions to helping students with mental health conditions, Mr Victor stresses that lecturers have to understand that the phenomenon is real and prevalent. He urged lecturers and everyone alike to learn the art of empathy, which will help us better put ourselves in the shoes of others. 

He encouraged people experiencing any mental health issues to speak with someone about it instead of nursing in isolation. 

“No amount of self-help books will help you if you don’t talk to someone about your problems. You have to speak with someone to feel much better,” he advised.