It is very hard for me to explain law school to people who have never gone, or have never had any experience with the legal profession. Sure, I can explain the hundreds of pages I read a week, the 7500-word seminar paper I am writing, and my numerous extracurricular activities, but that only scrapes the surface. Only my classmates, professors, and lawyers that I work for truly understand the physical, mental, and emotional toll that law school has on a person.
Imagine then, that this toll does not evaporate at graduation, but instead multiplies and carries over into your career as a lawyer. In school, you were worried about exams, advocacy competitions, and meeting deadlines - which are all incredibly important. But now, as a lawyer, the day-to-day decisions you make can completely alter the lives of the clients you serve, forever changing them, and not always in a positive way.
You would think, given the extreme amount of stress and pressure that is placed on law students and lawyers alike, there would be a safety net to ensure that stress, anxiety, and burnout do not consume their lives. Sadly however, this is a slowly progressing area, battling the stigma that comes with mental health and asking for help. Many law students and lawyers battle mental health issues, but either do not seek help, or are afraid that disclosing their problems will adversely affect others perceptions of them and their capabilities, and ruin their reputation as a lawyer
To illustrate my point, and to show that this is a nationwide issue, here are some statistics from the Dave Nee Foundation:
- Depression among law students is 8-9% prior to matriculation, 27% after one semester, 34% after 2 semesters, and 40% after 3 years.
- Stress among law students is 96%, compared to 70% in med students and 43% in graduate students.
- Entering law school, law students have a psychological profile similar to that of the general public. After law school, 20-40% have a psychological dysfunction.
- Lawyers are the most frequently depressed occupational group in the US.
- Lawyers rank 5th in the incidence of suicide by occupation.
These statistics should
shock and worry you. As a law student, they certainly concern me, both for
myself and my fellow classmates. As I said above, the recognition of mental
health issues are slowly being integrated, but the stigma around them continues
and makes it hard for people to come forward.
The stigma not only makes
it hard for lawyers to ask for help, but it can actually turn away prospective
law students from even applying to school. In my Public Health Seminar, a
fellow student shared that she knew people who simply didn’t apply because schools
and even the Florida Bar ask about any previous or current mental health
issues. When applying for the Character & Fitness evaluation on the Florida
Bar the application asks whether if, in the last 5 years, you have been treated
for or experienced: schizophrenia or any other psychotic disorder, a bipolar
disorder, or major depressive disorder that has impaired or could impair your
ability to practice law?
That is a heavy question,
and I could certainly understand why it would cause concern for some people,
who fear if they disclose mental health treatment this will then inhibit them
from following their dreams of becoming a lawyer. It goes back to the problem
of viewing mental health as a taboo topic, and if you struggle with it you are
an outlier, when in fact that is not the reality at all.
So how do we change the narrative? Well, luckily in 2019, the Florida Bar revised its mental health questions in order to help the prevalence of students avoiding seeking/disclosing treatment due to the application questions. In addition to that, mental well-being and lawyer health needs to be prioritized in all law schools, law firms, and bar associations to help destigmatize mental health issues as well as provide adequate resources to help those that are struggling. In 2020, the Florida Bar added one of those resources by opening a mental health hotline for eligible bar members to seek crisis intervention or a referrals. (833-351-9355).
There has also been a
push for law firms to offer free counseling, especially for those lawyers who
are in practice areas with emotionally demanding work like homicide, child
abuse, and human rights issues. Additionally, lawyers are speaking up about
changing the culture of law firms themselves to have a focus on wellbeing in
addition to growth, productivity, and success. This is proving to have some
success. According to The Conversation,
“The charity LawCare, which provides a helpline for legal professionals to
discuss issues of well-being, has seen an increase in the number of calls to
their service in recent years – an 11% increase from 2016-2017 and a further 5%
increase from 2017-2018.”
These are all positive
trends and I hope that they will continue and grow. I am thankful that Stetson
provides us with a number of mental health and support resources, and that
several of my professors have made it a reoccurring topic of discussion in
class. It is my hope that my colleagues and I can forge a new path for all
current and future lawyers where mental health is treated as normally as having
a headache or allergies. Not something to be afraid of, but rather something
that needs treatment, care, and understanding.
Until we recognize how common mental health
issues are, and that there is no reason for them to be taboo, we will not be
able to destigmatize them and help those who truly need it - but have been made
to feel too afraid to admit it or ask for help.
***The thoughts and opinions in this blog are entirely my own. I have attributed any outside material that I gathered to the sources below. If you or someone you know is struggling with a mental health issue, please reach out for help. (1-800-273-8255)***
Sources: https://www.mentalhelp.net/mental-health/hotline/
https://www.clio.com/blog/lawyer-wellness-mental-health/
https://www.stetson.edu/law/students/mental-health-and-support-resources.php
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