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Jun Cai from a village in central China’s Hunan Province was a model student. A talented writer, he had dreamed of pursuing a career in writing since child- hood. But his father, a doctor, hoped he would study medicine. When Jun was in his second year of high-school, his grandmother suffered a fatal stroke and Jun’s father made him swear to enter medical school in front of his dying grandmother.
A year later Jun entered medical school, but he became nervous and uncomfortable. He was particularly unhappy in classes like anatomy and acupuncture that require physical contact with patients.
From his second year in university, Jun began to suffer from insomnia and nightmares. He wrote to his parents about his wish to drop out and reapply for another major. But his father insisted he should stick to medical science.
Increasingly frustrated, Jun began to have abnormal thoughts and behave erratically. Finally on seeing a corpse during one of his internship rotations, he suffered a mental breakdown.
He was admitted to a mental health facility. However, he could no longer recognize his own parents and at times he even attacked them.
Psychological crisis
Jun’s story was recounted in a book on Chinese children and teenagers’ psychological crises published this January. The book was co-authored by Sun Yunxiao, Deputy Director of the China Youth Research Center in Beijing, and Ruan Mei, a writer.
To compile this book, the authors spent seven years visiting primary and middle schools, reformatories for juvenile delinquents and psychiatric hospitals in many provinces. After talking to hundreds of patients, they published a record of typical cases that describes the symptoms of dozens of young mental patients.
The Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimates at least 30 million Chinese youth under the age of 17 suffer from psychological and behavioral disorders.
Cui Yonghua, a child psychiatrist with the Beijing Anding Hospital, said although China has not carried out any nationwide survey on mental problems among children and teenagers, most experts agreed with the estimate of 30 million.
“The number 30 million is based on regional research conducted in recent years. Since the mental health of children and teenagers must have worsened over time, the real number could be even higher,” Cui said.
According to the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, in primary and middle schools, about 22-32 percent of students suffer from some form of mental disorder. The most common symptoms are interpersonal difficulties, emotional instability and learning disabilities.
It also estimates in Chinese universities, about 16-25 percent of the students suffer mental illnesses. They typically experience anxiety, phobia, neurasthenia and depression.
“More than 14.61 million school-age children, or about 4.31-5.83 percent of China’s total, suffer from attention deficit disorder (ADD),” said Zheng Yi, Vice President of the Beijing Anding Hospital and Director of the hospital’s Department of Child Psychiatry.
Studies show children with ADD are five to 10 times more likely to exhibit anti-social disorders and become addicted to harmful substances and engage in crime. Without treatment 70 percent of children with ADD will continue to show symptoms in their adolescence, and 30 percent will be haunted by the disease in adulthood and may develop other mental disorders.
Currently, very few medical institutions in China have specialized child psychiatric departments, including two in Beijing, and one each in Shanghai and Sichuan Province.
These psychiatric departments have a total of fewer than 100 beds. According to Zheng, China has no more than 200 child psychiatrists.
In their book, Sun and Ruan blamed the poor mental health of Chinese children and teenagers on the outdated education methods employed at homes and in schools as well as a stressful, highly competitive social environment.
“Bad social influences, especially incorrect education guidelines and tremendous pressure from the national college entrance exam are the fundamental triggers for the psychological crisis being experienced by Chinese children and teenagers,” the book said. Wrong education
In 2010, eight primary and middle school students in Shanghai committed suicide. Six killed themselves as a result of arguments with their parents, these arguments typically concerned education.
Chinese parents usually have high expectations on their children.
Spurred by the saying “Do not lose at the starting line,” parents now fight to send their children to exorbitantly priced kindergartens, highly competitive schools and additional cram schools.
“Many parents care too much about their children’s grades and do not communicate with their children, neglecting their psychological needs,” Sun said.
Li Yan’s mother did not go to university, but she was bent on sending her daughter to one, a good one. But Li did not score enough
on her high-school entrance exam. Though her mother did not make much money, she borrowed and paid the school 10,000 yuan($1,565) extra to take Li in a good high school.
Li cherished the opportunity “bought”by her mother, and studied hard. In the first year, she did well. But in the second year, her ranking in class slid several places. Her parents got nervous. “If you do not study hard and get a good enough score to go to a good university, you will waste the money I paid,” the mother repeatedly said to Li.
Her mother began to monitor Li more frequently. Except for sleeping at night and having meals, the only thing Li was allowed to do was to study. Her mother seldom talked to Li for fear of disturbing her.
As the pressure on her mounted, Li began to suffer insomnia and was unable to focus. She was eventually sent to a mental health institution. Her mother then regretted her actions, “I should not have put so much pressure on her.”
Sun and Ruan found many parents set strict requirements on their children’s academic performance, but they spoil their children in an effort to make them perform well. As a result, many Chinese children believe they will always get what they want.
“These pampered children rarely suffer setbacks at home, and they tend to be selfish and dependent and do not have a strong will,” Sun said.
In real life, when they encounter any adversity, they may easily collapse. Sun and Ruan met several children who became mentally ill after losing a family member, failing an exam, being scolded or clashing with classmates.
A 15-year-old boy with no family history of metal illness, under the pseudonym of Xiao Chang, went insane after a classmate punched him in a physical education class. After the incident, he constantly suspected others of wanting to beat him or make fun of him. In his first year of high school, he would run in and out of classrooms looking for people who despised him. He was later diagnosed with schizophrenia.
A 14-year-old girl, under the pseudonym of Xiao Fang, also went out of her mind after a clash with a classmate. After an altercation she was pushed to the ground by a classmate, unable to bear the humiliation, after the fight she lost her memory.
“Not only parents but schools use wrong education methods too,” said Xu Yali, an associate professor at the Social Work Department of Beijing-based China Youth University for Political Sciences.
Once, Xu asked the students in a class to recall their most humiliating experiences. To her surprise, Xu found out the students all reported their worst experience was being treated badly by their teachers.
One student said, “Once I made a mistake, the teacher ordered me to get out of the classroom. Then the teacher closed the door behind me and beat me.” Another student said, “Once I was late. The teacher asked me to raise two arms and stand against the blackboard like a captured criminal.”
“Such humiliating experiences at school are very harmful for children’s development,” Xu said. She called on teachers to accept their students and care for them.
Sun and Ruan said, during their interviews, they were often told, “Schools judge students overwhelmingly by grades and students with poor grades are looked down upon.”
Troubled families
On a cold windy night, a farmer living near Tuojiang River in Sichuan Province heard a girl crying and yelling for her mother. The next morning, a body was found in the river. Lian Zi, a teenage girl, had committed suicide.
Lian had lived with her aunt since she was five when her parents left her hometown to work in a city. Later her parents divorced, and her father won custody over her. After that, Lian’s mother disappeared from her life. Her father stayed in the city and took a new wife.
Lian’s aunt was busy running her business and did not have much time to look after Lian. As a confused adolescent she had no one to confide in. After a relationship with a local boy Lian became pregnant, but found the boy dating another girl. She eventually collapsed mentally.
Sun and Ruan found a large number of children left behind by migrant workers, especially those whose parents divorced, suffer psychological problems.
Liu Jitong, a medical professor at Peking University, said children left behind suffer psychological disorders because they have been deprived of the most basic and important necessity of childhood: parental love.
Liu Jiang, a child psychiatrist at the Peking University Institute of Mental Health, said many of her young patients were from troubled families.
“Nowadays a Chinese family usually has one child. Without siblings, harmonious relations between parents and between parents and the child are especially important to a child’s psychological health,” Liu said.
A year later Jun entered medical school, but he became nervous and uncomfortable. He was particularly unhappy in classes like anatomy and acupuncture that require physical contact with patients.
From his second year in university, Jun began to suffer from insomnia and nightmares. He wrote to his parents about his wish to drop out and reapply for another major. But his father insisted he should stick to medical science.
Increasingly frustrated, Jun began to have abnormal thoughts and behave erratically. Finally on seeing a corpse during one of his internship rotations, he suffered a mental breakdown.
He was admitted to a mental health facility. However, he could no longer recognize his own parents and at times he even attacked them.
Psychological crisis
Jun’s story was recounted in a book on Chinese children and teenagers’ psychological crises published this January. The book was co-authored by Sun Yunxiao, Deputy Director of the China Youth Research Center in Beijing, and Ruan Mei, a writer.
To compile this book, the authors spent seven years visiting primary and middle schools, reformatories for juvenile delinquents and psychiatric hospitals in many provinces. After talking to hundreds of patients, they published a record of typical cases that describes the symptoms of dozens of young mental patients.
The Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimates at least 30 million Chinese youth under the age of 17 suffer from psychological and behavioral disorders.
Cui Yonghua, a child psychiatrist with the Beijing Anding Hospital, said although China has not carried out any nationwide survey on mental problems among children and teenagers, most experts agreed with the estimate of 30 million.
“The number 30 million is based on regional research conducted in recent years. Since the mental health of children and teenagers must have worsened over time, the real number could be even higher,” Cui said.
According to the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, in primary and middle schools, about 22-32 percent of students suffer from some form of mental disorder. The most common symptoms are interpersonal difficulties, emotional instability and learning disabilities.
It also estimates in Chinese universities, about 16-25 percent of the students suffer mental illnesses. They typically experience anxiety, phobia, neurasthenia and depression.
“More than 14.61 million school-age children, or about 4.31-5.83 percent of China’s total, suffer from attention deficit disorder (ADD),” said Zheng Yi, Vice President of the Beijing Anding Hospital and Director of the hospital’s Department of Child Psychiatry.
Studies show children with ADD are five to 10 times more likely to exhibit anti-social disorders and become addicted to harmful substances and engage in crime. Without treatment 70 percent of children with ADD will continue to show symptoms in their adolescence, and 30 percent will be haunted by the disease in adulthood and may develop other mental disorders.
Currently, very few medical institutions in China have specialized child psychiatric departments, including two in Beijing, and one each in Shanghai and Sichuan Province.
These psychiatric departments have a total of fewer than 100 beds. According to Zheng, China has no more than 200 child psychiatrists.
In their book, Sun and Ruan blamed the poor mental health of Chinese children and teenagers on the outdated education methods employed at homes and in schools as well as a stressful, highly competitive social environment.
“Bad social influences, especially incorrect education guidelines and tremendous pressure from the national college entrance exam are the fundamental triggers for the psychological crisis being experienced by Chinese children and teenagers,” the book said. Wrong education
In 2010, eight primary and middle school students in Shanghai committed suicide. Six killed themselves as a result of arguments with their parents, these arguments typically concerned education.
Chinese parents usually have high expectations on their children.
Spurred by the saying “Do not lose at the starting line,” parents now fight to send their children to exorbitantly priced kindergartens, highly competitive schools and additional cram schools.
“Many parents care too much about their children’s grades and do not communicate with their children, neglecting their psychological needs,” Sun said.
Li Yan’s mother did not go to university, but she was bent on sending her daughter to one, a good one. But Li did not score enough
on her high-school entrance exam. Though her mother did not make much money, she borrowed and paid the school 10,000 yuan($1,565) extra to take Li in a good high school.
Li cherished the opportunity “bought”by her mother, and studied hard. In the first year, she did well. But in the second year, her ranking in class slid several places. Her parents got nervous. “If you do not study hard and get a good enough score to go to a good university, you will waste the money I paid,” the mother repeatedly said to Li.
Her mother began to monitor Li more frequently. Except for sleeping at night and having meals, the only thing Li was allowed to do was to study. Her mother seldom talked to Li for fear of disturbing her.
As the pressure on her mounted, Li began to suffer insomnia and was unable to focus. She was eventually sent to a mental health institution. Her mother then regretted her actions, “I should not have put so much pressure on her.”
Sun and Ruan found many parents set strict requirements on their children’s academic performance, but they spoil their children in an effort to make them perform well. As a result, many Chinese children believe they will always get what they want.
“These pampered children rarely suffer setbacks at home, and they tend to be selfish and dependent and do not have a strong will,” Sun said.
In real life, when they encounter any adversity, they may easily collapse. Sun and Ruan met several children who became mentally ill after losing a family member, failing an exam, being scolded or clashing with classmates.
A 15-year-old boy with no family history of metal illness, under the pseudonym of Xiao Chang, went insane after a classmate punched him in a physical education class. After the incident, he constantly suspected others of wanting to beat him or make fun of him. In his first year of high school, he would run in and out of classrooms looking for people who despised him. He was later diagnosed with schizophrenia.
A 14-year-old girl, under the pseudonym of Xiao Fang, also went out of her mind after a clash with a classmate. After an altercation she was pushed to the ground by a classmate, unable to bear the humiliation, after the fight she lost her memory.
“Not only parents but schools use wrong education methods too,” said Xu Yali, an associate professor at the Social Work Department of Beijing-based China Youth University for Political Sciences.
Once, Xu asked the students in a class to recall their most humiliating experiences. To her surprise, Xu found out the students all reported their worst experience was being treated badly by their teachers.
One student said, “Once I made a mistake, the teacher ordered me to get out of the classroom. Then the teacher closed the door behind me and beat me.” Another student said, “Once I was late. The teacher asked me to raise two arms and stand against the blackboard like a captured criminal.”
“Such humiliating experiences at school are very harmful for children’s development,” Xu said. She called on teachers to accept their students and care for them.
Sun and Ruan said, during their interviews, they were often told, “Schools judge students overwhelmingly by grades and students with poor grades are looked down upon.”
Troubled families
On a cold windy night, a farmer living near Tuojiang River in Sichuan Province heard a girl crying and yelling for her mother. The next morning, a body was found in the river. Lian Zi, a teenage girl, had committed suicide.
Lian had lived with her aunt since she was five when her parents left her hometown to work in a city. Later her parents divorced, and her father won custody over her. After that, Lian’s mother disappeared from her life. Her father stayed in the city and took a new wife.
Lian’s aunt was busy running her business and did not have much time to look after Lian. As a confused adolescent she had no one to confide in. After a relationship with a local boy Lian became pregnant, but found the boy dating another girl. She eventually collapsed mentally.
Sun and Ruan found a large number of children left behind by migrant workers, especially those whose parents divorced, suffer psychological problems.
Liu Jitong, a medical professor at Peking University, said children left behind suffer psychological disorders because they have been deprived of the most basic and important necessity of childhood: parental love.
Liu Jiang, a child psychiatrist at the Peking University Institute of Mental Health, said many of her young patients were from troubled families.
“Nowadays a Chinese family usually has one child. Without siblings, harmonious relations between parents and between parents and the child are especially important to a child’s psychological health,” Liu said.