Since December 2019, when the World Health Organization (WHO) announced a new viral pneumonia that had originated in China (Lee 2020), governments have been forced to carry out strategies to respond, adapt, and overcome obstacles, creating programs to guarantee security and social and economic stability.In Mexico, the official announcement of the first infected patient was on February 29, 2020 (Méndez-Arriaga 2020). Thereafter, the Mexican government has implemented strategies to combat COVID-19 and prevent its spread. One such strategy was to close those industries, corporations, and workplaces that were not considered essential, resulting in thousands of industries having to improvise ways to continue operating. One of these was the education

Confinement and a lack of social interaction are associated with depressive symptoms, low self-esteem, and suicidal thoughts. We report the results of a cross-sectional survey of 1414 junior high school students. The aim was to evaluate the prevalence of depression, anxiety, and stress in Guadalajara, Mexico, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mean scores on the validated Spanish version of the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21) were found to be 6.15 ± 5.6 for depression, 5.8 ± 5.2 for anxiety, and 8.08 ± 5.3 for stress. Female students scored higher in all three conditions (p < 0.001). Students who had relatives infected with COVID-19 showed significantly more anxiety than those who did not (p < 0.004). Although certain demographic groups are at higher risk of manifesting depression, anxiety, and stress, the student population has also been affected by the global impact of the pandemic.