I feel that in today’s culture, talking about mental health is somehow taboo.
In the U.S. specifically, where workers are encouraged to put their home lives aside to work 60+ hours a week, the lack of care to one’s mental state and any problems that come with it does not come to me as a surprise. That same logic filters into the out-of-work environment – if you’ve got a mental disorder, it must mean that you’re crazy and that you are somehow broken.
Society could not be more wrong – or hypocritical.
People, from what I’ve seen over my years, are weird. There isn’t a single person I’ve met whom I could classify as “normal”. The mental quirks and quips about every individual is what makes them unique, and what makes them interesting to be around. It also probably makes their own lives living hells from time to time.
I would argue that every person on the planet, especially in America, has some sort of undiagnosed mental oddity in them – whether or not what it is they have is considered a mental illness yet aside (the list of medical mental illnesses grows all of the time, and our methods of diagnosing them become more and more specific.)
But I don’t want to waste this column to support mental illness as a whole – I want to address some mental illnesses in students at Stevens and what they can do about it.
At Stevens specifically, most of us are “weird” in some way or another, and I totally lump myself into that category. From nerds who suffered with social awkwardness in high school, to maybe some athletes who are always under stress and feel like exploding, to lonely people who have trouble making friends, or maybe even people who just feel really angry about nothing in particular all of the time, all of us could benefit from seeing a therapist.
Go figure, Stevens thinks so too. Stevens Counselling and Disability Services were invented to solve this issue, and there are a number of students who silently attend this room on the 7th floor of the Howe Center, probably afraid of what their peers may think if they see them attend.
Now, this is the attitude that is wrong. You wouldn’t be worried about letting your friends see a doctor, so why build anxiety from going to a mind doctor (essentially what a psychological therapist is). Now, you don’t have to explain what you discuss, in the same way that you don’t have to explain how your warts got frozen off at the dermatologist’s office, but you shouldn’t be afraid or anxious to go to a therapist to resolve some mental issues.
It is my belief that every single member of the Stevens Community, from the President to the professors to the Compass One workers, to the students, should all have a few sit down sessions with a therapist, just to address any issues they might have. You may think it is a waste of time – you’d be wrong. Imagine how nice it would be to have a confidential person just to talk to and vent about your day? It is pretty relieving. Moreover, SCADS is free. You only need to sign up and fill out a form (albeit, that form is huge).
I’ve seen a bunch of people heading into that room since I myself started going, and I doubt any of them would talk about it. I care a whole heck of a bunch less, so I don’t mind. But really, if you’re reading this, seriously consider going to the 7th floor of the Howe Center to schedule up an appointment with a therapist. It is typically a pretty relaxing meeting and makes you feel a little better if you just open up to your therapist about stuff. Aside from one hour out of your day, there is seriously no downside to it.
So go on and get checked up, especially if you think you don’t need it – you’ll thank me later.
