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Mental Health Awareness                    Activism   

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Mental Health Awareness                    Activism   

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By: Faith Miller

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For my activism project, I raised awareness for mental health and promoted ending the unhealthy stigma behind it.

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who: Dr Shelli Haynes

When talking with Dr Shelli Haynes, I tried to gain knowledge on why schools were lacking in services for mental health and how I could start change within Webster Schroeder.

She had some really good points when asked about why she personally thought schools ignored or did not pay much attention to mental health.

-education does not place value on learning about mental health or learning coping skills
- greater value was placed on general subjects in that mental health sessions became no longer allowed during the school day
-Mental health is still stigmatized so it gets ignored or looked down upon, rather than accepted as something all humans deal with in varying degrees.

When asked about ways the school could possibly help start important change, she suggested hiring mental health professionals to teach classes about mental health symptoms, coping skills, interpersonal relationships, identity for teachers and students.

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Public policy makes a difference in the lives of both the people living with mental health conditions and the people in their lives. Changes in policy can mean better outcomes.

NAMI is widely known for their advocacy efforts that have led to many victories including:

Securing better funding for research.

Protecting access to treatments and services.

Attaining mental health parity to ensure that mental illness is treated equally to physical illness in most insurance plans.

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On July 1, 2018, NYS passed a bill that updates New York State law to keep public education apace with their advancements in the understanding of mental health issues. It added a paragraph regarding the teaching of mental health in section 1. This now requires schools to teach about mental health education, which is a HUGE win.
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Public Opinion:
Public stigma is a barrier that prevents many individuals in the U.S. from engaging in mental health care. A poll taken in 2018 says that 87% of Americans believe that there needs to be more support for kids struggling with a mental illness. As time progresses, mental health becomes more widely known and less talked down upon. More people are starting to understand that it effects lots of people in every background and class. Though this is good news, this does not mean that there is not any bad stigma behind it. Some people still see it as something "made up" and that it is just "people asking for attention" when this is clearly not the case. There is still a lot of progress needed to be made regarding mental health.
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Mental disorders are among the leading causes of work losses, measured by absenteeism and sick-leave rates. Depression, anxiety, and alcohol use disorders are the leading mental disorders producing financial and human capital losses. On the other hand, favorable conditions in workplaces are paramount for better and healthier worker performance. Job stress, bullying, moral, sexual harassment, and violence in the workplace are factors related to poor mental health and low productivity. Burnout is another condition that depends on an individual’s vulnerability and on the organization’s work dynamics. Problems in work and in time organization, task structure, career development, and the relationship between the organization and workers are the main factors affecting workers’ mental health and productivity.

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- Wrote to board of education twice about how mental health and the lack of education and awareness behind it effects Schroeder and that change is needed.
- Got a few individuals to come together outside of school and made posters regarding mental health to post around school and the city of Webster.
- Posted posters around Webster - Starbucks, Pier 1, Wegmans, etc.
- Got together with some people to plan a day for the entire school (and outsiders) to wear green to spread awareness, show that no one is fighting alone, and to encourage people to end the spread of the unhealthy stigma behind mental health.
- Made bracelets to hand out during school on that day. Made more posters regarding that particular day. Posted on social media (and had people from school and outside of school post as well) about the Mental Health Awareness day.
- Posted a PSA on social media platforms and had the morning show play it.
- Met with Paul Benz about having some kind of motivation quote on the morning show to start every monday off with a happy start (for next year).
- Presented to my psych class on depression and how to spot signs of it in classmates and how to approach it! (also how exercise is a great way to treat depression).

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I started to research about mental health in schools and if it was even a topic brought up (considering I was never exposed to it in any school system). Through research,  I found out that on July 1st, 2018,  a bill was gone into effect that specifically calls on "

school districts
to ensure that their health education programs recognize the multiple
dimensions of health by including mental health and the relation between
mental and physical health in health education."

Even with this news, I still wanted to see if our school was implementing it and if it was enough.

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Though I personally have dealt with mental health first hand, I knew my knowledge on mental health could expand to a greater depth.

To gain a better understanding of it and what was offered to deal with it, I did the following:
- I contacted NAMI (National Alliance Mental Illness) and talked with Tina Yun Lee, in charge of Community Education and the Outreach Manager for NAMI-NYS.
- Watched "Running From Crazy" and "Suicide the Ripple Effect".
-Read numerous articles including "Mental Health In Schools: A HIdden Crisis Affecting Millions Of Students" by NPR.
- Reached out to therapist Dr Shelli Haynes and talked with her about mental health in schools and what she has seen first hand.
- Researched depression specifically and how to treat it and presented in psych class.
- Talked with Mrs. Henry about her experiences with it as a counselor.

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From interviewing to researching, I was able to gain so much more knowledge about mental health.

I learned more statistics to spread and help others become aware of how significant mental illness is in our own school systems and the world in general - 1 in 5 students have a mental health disorder and out of those, 49% do not go to a professional to seek help.

I also learned from both my initial and professional interviews, that this problem with schools not doing enough for mental health is everywhere, not just Schroeder. I also learned of different ways to tackle this problem. One suggestion was from Tina Yun Lee, who mentioned that NAMI has a program where a school can set up a time and date and have staff go through training and a presentation to further their knowledge and how to spot signs that a student is in need of help (and how to help them). Another great suggestion was from Dr Shelli Haynes who talked about having a day where students and staff all participate is some kind of "Mental Health Awareness Day" - she suggests that this would help students recognize that they are not alone in their fight.

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Mental Health can be a scary topic to approach and you may feel like you can't do much to help out. That is not the case.

You can contact the school board of education and let them know what you personally have experienced or seen inside of Webster Schroeder! This will really show them that this is a bigger problem then they might have seen.
(Maria Rigillo

239 San Ron Drive

Webster, NY 14580)

If that may be too much for you, you can even go to a teacher you look up to. Ask them how you can personally improve a classroom setting and how maybe they (the teacher) can change the class environment to benefit students mental health.

One of the biggest things you can do is be kind to everyone. A simple "good morning" can completely changes someone's day.

At the end of the day, your voice is something you should use. Speak up about things you see and things that you know others may be mute about because they are affected by it.
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If YOU or a friend are having problems with mental health, talk to a trusted adult or counselor here at Schroeder. If you know a friend is going through a tough time, be there for them and encourage them to see someone. You should not keep quiet about this because one bad thing can cause a lot of pain and hurt to someone. Use your voice and be there for others.