This story was written and co-produced with Jillian Kassor
When coming to college for the first time, students are braced for a massive change of lifestyle. However, with a high emotion and high stress environment, their mental health may change as well. While this change in mental health has always been a reality, more students today are having open conversations about their mental health. Mental health initiatives have stemmed from these conversations, and more services are available to those who seek help.
On such initiative are free mental health screenings that the Western Carolina chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) has sponsored. Current SAE president Matthew Smart initiated the online screenings in August of 2018 after a personal struggle with mental health.
“When thinking of services to provide to our community, I thought back to what would have helped me,” said Smart.
The challenges faced by university students create a near perfect storm for mental health issues to arise. Most students come to a university straight from high school at age 18 and finish by the time they are 22. That age range also happens to overlap with the age that mental health issues begin to surface. Couple that with stress and anxiety from college, the problem becomes exacerbated further. Screening for these serious issues highly increases the chances of getting treatment. According to a study by Mental Health America, 66 percent of people who received a professional mental health screening planned to take further action based on their results.
The screening, done through MindWise Innovations, is completely anonymous and can be taken at anytime online through WCU’s website. The short screenings allow anyone who takes it to identify if their thoughts and feelings are consistent with common mental health issues. Of the screenings provided by WCU and SAE, over half of the results have been related to depression and anxiety.
Since the screenings have started, over 400 have been completed by members of the WCU community. With college being a time of self discovery, high emotion, and stress, it is easy to let your mental health slip. Staying ahead of the curve with regular screenings can help students anticipate and understand their own minds for the better.
