This past Sunday, the Out of the Darkness Walk was held on campus. It was the second annual walk held in Hoboken by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, and this time Stevens partnered up with the organization.
There were a lot of people in attendance, a good number from both the Hoboken community and the Stevens community. Although a lot of students were a bit annoyed about being there so early in the morning, whether they had to be there for athletics or Greek life or any other club requirement. It’s not that students didn’t think that the cause wasn’t important. A lot were just more annoyed about having to be up in the morning. As someone who asked her residents to sign up for the walk, the 9 a.m. sign in was a hard sell.
I want to make it very clear that this is not a matter of students being insensitive to the issue — there were a lot of people who felt very passionate about the walk whether it was because of their own personal struggles or those of friends. I just think that many students had a short term vision. Yet, it was hard not to be moved by the stories that people shared before the walk.
The loss of family, loved ones, or the personal struggle — all the stories were gut-wrenching and heartbreaking. It was hard to not be moved just listening to them. One story that stood out to me was a woman sharing about her personal struggles. I remember thinking, “Wow, I can’t imagine sharing something so personal in front of so many people.” It was so brave of her to do so, but most of all it was important.
In her story, she talked about wanting people to know they are not alone. That is why it is so important to share personal struggles. The way our society looks at mental health is extremely unhealthy. A lot of it is cultural and will take a long time and effort to change. I have heard so many friends from Indian families laughing about how much their family needs a therapist, but that would never happen.
People talk about having a cold or diabetes. There are support groups for cancer patients. We should be able to talk about our mental health without being embarrassed or afraid. This is why that women’s story stood out to me so much. I think it is so important that anyone having trouble knows that it is okay and that they are not alone. This way they are not afraid of looking for help, whether that is seeking counseling or telling their friend, “Hey, I’m not doing okay and don’t know what to do.”
This is why we need to stop thinking so short term. Yes, it might be annoying to wake up early in the morning, but showing even that small amount of support can change someone’s life. Yes, it might be scary to talk about something uncomfortable, but you might have a tremendous effect on someone.
Let’s speak up and talk about mental health, just like we would talk about a cold.
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