This isn't really an advice thing but do you think there's a higher proportion of mentally ill peopl

Re: This isn't really an advice thing but do you think there's a higher proportion of mentally ill people in this school than in other schools because of the intelligence standards?

Dear Reader,

I once read somewhere that the more you’re exposed to varied type of knowledge, the more you’re endorsed in all things related to reality. Many people live in an idealistic world, however, the more we learn - the more we’ll know. Knowledge can serve as both a blessing or a curse.

Mental illness is a common factor in today’s society. The pace of things have graduated to

uncontrollable forms of psychological diseases. Depression is common amongst us because we can no longer differentiate between idealistic and realistic. Our lives are built upon realistic notions.

Some of us have been tagged as pessimists. The optimists are rare amongst us.

There are a number of studies which link intelligence to mental illness and not solely depression. These include strains such as mood disorders, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia etc. You can see this even throughout history. Consider intellectuals such as Sylvia Plath, Edgar Allen Po, John Nash, Nikola Tesla, for example. They were notorious for their eccentricity as well as instability.

This is not to say that intelligence is equated to mental illness or that all mentally ill people

are intelligent, but rather that there is a significant connection. Notably and namely - bipolar

disorder and creativity have been linked since the dawn of the DSM (hyperbole) and you have

Maria Grech Ganado as a local example of that. So statistically, if we assume that intelligence is proportional to good grades, then yes, it is likely to be more common amongst St. Aloysius

students. Most of us succumb to stress and pressure. Intelligence also means high expectations. The breath of fresh air we strive for cannot be inhaled due to our nature to be perfectionists.

Your observation is, ultimately, correct.

Yours sincerely,

The Advice Team.

#advice