How Colleges Flunk Mental Health
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How Colleges Flunk Mental Health
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Re: How Colleges Flunk Mental Health
#2Not just mental health. They're flunking physical health, in my experience.
Simple health events go un or poorly treated. The problem cascades into a personal crisis for the student.
But, continuing to staff that health center was taking something like 0.01 % of the budget.
Many of these residential kids are, inconsistent RA's and whatnot aside, "on their own" for the first time. Schools need to lower the hurdles to seeking and receiving prompt and proper medical care.
Re: How Colleges Flunk Mental Health
#3I think it's obvious from these stories that students are punished for revealing their mental health problems. Whether this is for liability reasons, image reasons, or something else on behalf of the colleges is really irrelevant. The reality is that this is how our society treats those who are sick. In the wider society, most of these students would likely be incarcerated or committed and deprived of basic rights. In that, sense some of the consequences they face are much lighter than what they would face out in society.
'He wishes he had never gone to the health center for help that night; as it turned out, the pills he took just made him sleepy and all he needed was an electrolyte infusion. "I tell all my friends to avoid that place like the plague." he says.'
Essentially what Dan found out the hard way is pretty much the only way to avoid being punished for one's illness: keep it secret. Quite sad, indeed.
Re: How Colleges Flunk Mental Health
#4As someone who's planning to return to school as a grad student this fall, this article is very unsettling. I've never seen a therapist or sought the help of mental health professionals in the past, and while I've had periods of time where I felt some symptoms of depression I don't know if it was comparable to any of these experiences described. However, I know that graduate school is a high-stress environment for anyone, and I'm concerned at the notion that any potential issues I might end up having in the future could have such consequences were I to seek help or therapy.
If anyone here has experience in such matters, what should I know to be able to get any help or therapy that's needed, without risking this sort of punishment for something out of one's control? Is the solution to only seek non-student-health sources of mental health treatment, ones that in some way can't report back?
Re: How Colleges Flunk Mental Health
#5America in general flunks mental health.
Re: How Colleges Flunk Mental Health
#6The biggest issue is that this will mean that people who need help will likely now not seek it at all, for fear that the college will eject them from campus!
Ironically, these colleges are where you study to be a psychiatrist.
Re: How Colleges Flunk Mental Health
#7The purpose of university is to weed out the mentally weak and the incompetent. I don't grasp how they kick this kid out of school but provide lighter course loads to problem students. Should it not be the other way around, help the suicidal and remove the loafers?
Re: How Colleges Flunk Mental Health
#8As someone who's planning to return to school as a grad student this fall, this article is very unsettling. I've never seen a therapist or sought the help of mental health professionals in the past, and while I've had periods of time where I felt some symptoms of depression I don't know if it was comparable to any of these experiences described. However, I know that graduate school is a high-stress environment for an…
I asked a few questions relating to depression at our health center and felt like i was being interrogated by the doctor there. The worst part of it was that I had the feeling that no matter what I said his mind was already made up. I wasn't committed or ejected from school or anything, but I definitely don't want to bring it up again at my health center. There's a counseling center here as well, but after my experience at the health center I don't have the motivation to check it out.
I ended up going outside the school and am happy with my choice. This is anecdotal, but you might want to do the same.
Re: How Colleges Flunk Mental Health
#9As someone who's planning to return to school as a grad student this fall, this article is very unsettling. I've never seen a therapist or sought the help of mental health professionals in the past, and while I've had periods of time where I felt some symptoms of depression I don't know if it was comparable to any of these experiences described. However, I know that graduate school is a high-stress environment for an…
Schools have counselors that you can go see and I would recommend doing it since they usually don't charge anything (which means it will be in your budget). I am 100% sure you will not be kicked out of school for seeing the counselor and this is completely different from what "Dan" from the story went through. The key difference being that you are seeking treatment for stress/depression/anxiety/whatever as opposed to seeking immediate medical care following a suicide attempt.
Re: How Colleges Flunk Mental Health
#10The purpose of university is to weed out the mentally weak and the incompetent. I don't grasp how they kick this kid out of school but provide lighter course loads to problem students. Should it not be the other way around, help the suicidal and remove the loafers?
> The purpose of university is to weed out the mentally weak and the incompetent.
I believe the purpose is higher learning.