To: The Ohio State House
Mental Health Awareness in Higher Education
Require colleges and universities to implement mental health awareness education in their curriculum. Teach students and staff how to help and how not to help.
Why is this important?
I have had issues with depression when I first started college and began involving friends and staff but felt that, although they had the best intentions, tried to help in ways that made matters worse for the both of us. A group of us would like to see a policy implemented that requirs colleges and universities to include, in their curriculum, education on mental health awareness as a prevention tool for students and staff. There are counselors available and that is wonderful but peers and staff can help even more by knowing what to do and what not to do when faced with a frien, peer, or student that is showing signs of mental illness especially depression. Saying or doing the wrong thing can make matters much worse.