Stress overload and the new nightmare for Dreamers

To determine if, following threats to DACA policies, Dreamer college students experienced greater stress overload, more symptoms, and worse grades than their classmates. Participants: Students (n = 424) from a large public university, including Dreamers (n = 64), participated between March 2017 and June 2018. Methods: Students completed an anonymous online survey containing self-report measures of stress overload, symptoms, grades, and background characteristics. Results: Dreamers reported significantly higher levels of stress overload than did other students, including minorities and immigrants. Dreamers reported more somatic symptoms but not lower grades than other students-outcomes mediated, wholly or partially, by stress overload. Conclusion: Findings document the health toll of current politics on Dreamers, and indicate disproportionate stress overload as a reason. They also attest to Dreamer "grit" in maintaining grades nevertheless. Implications include the need for proactive support by universities and broader social policy change to restore well-being to these students.