By Elizabeth KeatingThe Daily Northwestern

It’s only January and ailments abound at Northwestern. We’re catching colds from the frosty weather and developing red eyes from endless reading. and everyone has internship fever. It’s enough to drive the average student mad – literally.

Although an overwhelming sense of entitlement is the core stereotype defining our generation, we’re also spiraling toward a sickness far worse: sky-rocketing mental health problems.

Fifteen percent of college students were diagnosed with depression in 2006, up from the year before, and far exceeding the percentage for the general population. Ten percent of college women have an eating disorder. The same number suffer from anxiety. Many students take anti-psychotic medication as if they were vitamins.

Beyond emergency services, it takes one week to get an intake appointment at Counselling and Psychological Services and can be weeks before regular treatment begins. Demand is so high that CAPS can provide only 12 sessions to each student over four years, although they will refer to an outside therapist.

How did a generation for which anything seemed possible become such a mental mess, with such a strong drive to run ourselves into the ground before we can legally drink? A step back and a deep breath are imperative for preventing future implosion.

We know what experts tell us: Eat healthy and get enough exercise and sleep. Here are some unscientific tips based purely on experience and conjecture to avoid a mental health slide this winter:

-Discover a new hobby. Do something that would look ridiculous, or at least unprofessional on your resume. Write poetry. Learn to tap dance. Find something that enthralls you and leave your earthly worries at the door.