Mental health awareness month has made its arrival this school year. Millions of adults and teens are affected by mental health disorders, but are not paid attention to.
These issues are frequently not mentioned in our personal or professional lives. As a result, the country is celebrating the month of October to call everyone’s attention forward to
these topics that are brushed over in hopes that doing so may encourage discussion and assist people in need in getting help and resources they are entitled to.
Mental Health Awareness Month is significant to the adults and the youth at Champe in a variety of ways. Mental health isn’t a topic that should be considered harmful, as many may think, it is something that affects many people of all ages and backgrounds. However, mental health issues are not superficial, they are disorders and illnesses that are medically harmful towards humans as are physical illnesses and disorders. Due to this hindrance in mental health awareness in the young, many kids and teenagers will resort to self-harm, with no knowledge of how to deal with these issues.
According to Statistics, beyondblue.org, “One in ten young people aged 12-17 years old will self-harm, one in 13 will seriously consider a suicide attempt, and one in 40 will attempt suicide. Many children as young as 11 are bearing mental illnesses that are not being looked at or concerned for.”
School can be a stressful environment for a large number of students, and it is incredibly important to acknowledge this and help to improve this. Teachers and administrators can have a positive or negative impact on this issue as well. They are the mentors of the young and are teaching each and every day, inevitably, influencing them in some way. There are many teachers and students who agree that these mentors contribute greatly to the mental health of the students.
“Teachers can work on checking in with students and educating themselves on the signs of mental illness in order to make sure everyone feels safe and comfortable.” junior Qirrat Rizvi said.
Peers, school, teachers, adults, and supervisors of the youth can contribute to this. Whether it is in a negative or positive way, it’s up to them on how they are involved.
Mental illnesses come in a variety of forms. Numerous mental health illnesses can be identified and handled in a unique way, such as dissociative identity disorder, bipolar disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and alcohol use. Not only are these illnesses pushed to the side in adulthood, but the amount of this country’s youth suffering in their mental health is only going up in number.
As the teachers and elders of students at school also impact this heavily, it is important to acknowledge that they are also trying their best to do what they can and that this month is also significant to them.
“Especially in highschool, a lot of students experience stress, because it’s just a huge part of human life,” Science teacher Rachel DiSilvio said.” Even after highschool, as adults, we will experience stress because we have deadlines and we have a lot of different areas of our life that we’re trying to accomplish at the same time, so I think that finding something that helps you with that stress and just being healthy in that way is incredibly important.”
Without a doubt, the people present in the lives of high school students, especially their mentors, have a heavy impact on the well being of the young. The education, guidance, and sympathy provided by these mentors considerably influence the sense of assurance felt by students. When teachers create a comfortable and supportive learning environment, students can feel more at ease, benefiting their mental state. For example, Champe has many signs and quotes along the halls and in front of rooms expressing belonging or things that help students out like the Champe Chat, Learning Lab, and Sources of Strength.
According to Why teachers need to be aware of their students’ mental health(EdNC), ”Teachers can have an incredibly positive impact when they create a supportive environment in which students feel safe to talk about their emotional well-being.” Appreciating and recognizing the significant role teachers play in this aspect of security highlights the importance of providing them with assistance to address the mental health needs of students in high school.
The youth have been suffering in silence, as have past generations, and It is not time to be quiet about mental health anymore. “Mental health awareness as a whole is significant in my life because when life gets difficult, It reminds me how to react in a healthy way and truly care for the health of my mental state. This month raises awareness of trauma and the impact it can have on the physical and emotional well being of people. It’s time to speak up and show up for this month in honor of the battles of mental health that many face or have faced. ”
