It is not every day that over 1,000 students and teachers watch a movie at the same time during the school day. However, Washington High School did just that Oct. 24. During first hour, faculty and students watched a documentary to raise awareness about anxiety among teenagers called “Angst.”

“We have a lot of students here that are struggling or know kids that are struggling, and the term anxiety has evolved a lot over the past decade,” vice principal Mary Kleekamp said.

The documentary highlighted the difference between anxiety and anxiety disorders. Anxiety happens when people feel uneasy, nervousness or worry when they do not know what will happen. However, anxiety disorders are a type of mental illness that cause the same unease and fear that doesn’t go away and may progressively get worse over time.

“I think it was very beneficial for people who don’t understand what it is or what people are going through,” senior Allie Montgomery said.

While a lot of students enjoyed the 56 minute documentary, many wish that instead of multiple people telling different stories that it would have dove deeper into dealing and living with anxiety.

“It was better than a lot of people thought it would be,” Montgomery said. “It definitely skimmed the surface of a lot of issues. It didn’t really go in-depth as I wish it would have.”

Although this documentary may have just scratched the surface of anxiety among students, the showing completed its goal of teaching Washington more about anxiety.

“[The movie was important to show]…as an educational tool,” Kleekamp said, “and as a resource so students, parents, community members [and] everyone in this area knows that there is help available, that there are coping mechanisms and just know that you are not alone.”