UNCNSRD by Boitumelo Mabale

UNCNSRD Why hide it?

Mental Health

Edition 1 May 2019

CONTENT

The Team

Team Message

Exercising Improves Mental Health

Kids on Drugs

Black Transgenerational Trauma

This Thing Called Life

It is Time for Society to Evolve

Make Smiling a Habit

She'll be the Light in the Dark

Body Positivity

T h e

T e a m

Lerato Radinne

Dylan Coetzee Designer

Boitumelo Mabale Il l u s trator

Editor

Isipho Bakana Editor

Patience Masiza Photographer

Team Message BY: DYLAN COETZEE

ental health and its awareness is a pressing today. Not enough care is placed in this facet, it leaves people alone and suffering. A feeling no one should ever experience. Why is society this way? Uncnsrd delves deep into the way in which society acts towards mental health from a number of angles. The power of a smile is a theme that is ever present, whilst reflection on pain is crucial to the recovery of an individual. Processes and experiences are not being acknowledged and appreciated to the correct extent.

There are multiple issues addressed and exposed including the effects of drugs as a coping mechanism. It is time to give voices to those who feel they do not have. It is time to unearth truths and get society thinking and spinning on its head.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Uncnsrd delves deep into the way in which society acts towards mental healthâ&#x20AC;?

Cancer survivors go through a huge amount of mental trauma through treatment and the psychology of being ill. This is unpacked and spilled out to all to see, to hear and to understand.

Uncnsrd stirs up the dust that should never have settled in the realm of mental health. It is thought provoking, it is spine-chilling. It is the truth.

WHY HIDE IT?

Nothing rings more true. Society and the members within it have adopted a terrible habit of not expressing, not processing and ultimately suffer for. These ideals have long been drummed into generations and generations with very little to show for it. It should not be this way and it is time for change to begin. It starts now.

Expression through art around Rhodes University campus. Pictures by: Dylan Coetzee

It is words that fill a powerful story, words to show others that they are in fact not alone. It is an emotion that too many people feel far too often.

Illustration by: Boitumelo Mabale

Exercising Improves Student Mental Health By: Boitumelo Mabale

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rom the 5th of January 2019, Rhodes University’s student led Facebook group, UCKAR Student Body Page 2019, has been flooded with posts concerning weightloss and exercise programmes. This yearly tradition begs the question of whether exercise can improve the mental health of students. When, in fact, the two are interlinked.

According to Creamer Media’s Engineering News, the statistics released by the South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG) indicate that one in six South Africans suffer from anxiety, depression or substance problems. The perception in South Africa is that mental health is not as important as physical health. In his research article, Physical Exercise and Psychological WellBeing, Steve Edwards

says, “regular exercise was associated with significant improvements in total well-being score and especially in the wellbeing components of mood, sense of coherence, fortitude, stress and coping.” Therefore, students that take part in exercise programmes will be improving both physical and mental health at the same time. When asked if participating in an exercise weight-loss programme improved her self-esteem, Zimkhitha Sani said, “Oh yes. It definitely made me much more comfortable in my skin.” Zimkhitha is a fourth year Rhodes University student who encourages for people to use exercise as an outlet and a way to improve selfesteem. “You need to understand how

Muse: Ndapewa Victor

you are managing stress and how you see yourself. It is important that we see therapy as not for really sick people but as something for everyone and an important preventative measure,” says clinical psychologist, Cassandra Govender. By people posting opportunities for students to take part in fitness programmes, it offers an opportunity to kill two birds with one stone. By using the UCKAR 2019 group page as a connection, Rhodes University students and staff have the means of paying more attention to mental health as well as their physical. This yearly tradition brings hopes for people to pay far more attention to their mental health when loaded with the academic and social expectations that comes with being in university.

Students are often left drowning in academics to an extent where they mental health becomes less important. It is vital to find coping mechanisms that can help you stay afloat. Illustration by: Boitumelo Mabale.

Kids On Drugs a better way of dealing with stressful situations, such as too much work ex, drugs, alcoand too little time. Such hol and other an individual is Tshethings that our parents have gofatso, a fourth year warned us not Journalism and Media to try have now become Studies student at Rhodes basic coping mechaUniversity. She says that she sometimes uses alnisms for university students all over South Africohol as a coping mechca, and around the world. anism. “alcohol is one of Coping mechanisms are my coping mechanisms ways in which external and internal stresses are dealt with. Every individual has coping mechanisms, even if they do not know it. BY: LERATO RADINNE

In a university like Rhodes, alcohol consumption is extremely prevalent amongst students. The drinking is what the university is known for amongst the youth. Some students say they drink solely for recreational purposes, others say they drink because they have either had a long week or are about have a long week – alcohol is what they use to cope with previous stress and anticipated stress. However, you still find the more people drink, the more stressed they become. The coping mechanism is temporary.

"The consumption of alcohol is just the minimum, drug use is also prevalent amongst South African university students."

By analysing the word “coping” one would automatically think that every single type of coping mechanism works, but this is not true. According to Susan Glusker at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behaviours, ineffective coping mechanisms are referred to maladaptive coping mechanisms. But what happens when your own method of surviving is starts to slowly kill your mental health? These type of coping mechanisms are common amongst university students who do not now

that coils negatively on mental health, it just makes me lose the ability to think rationally” she says. Using a substance such as alcohol to deal with stress has proven to be ineffective for many people because of the negative effect it has on your mind. Alcohol creates what many would call “temporary joy’ because in the moment, you feel great but as soon you are no longer intoxicated, you still have to deal with the same stress.

The consumption of alcohol is just the minimum, drug use is also prevalent amongst South African university students. An Honours student from Nelson Mandela University in the Eastern Cape, who chose to protect his reputation by remaining anonymous, expressed his pattern of drug use. He uses drugs like Ritalin to help him concentrate on school work and get assignments done on time.

Ritalin is a stimulant drug that has been used by doctors since the mid 1950s and it is commonly used for people with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), the drug helps with concentration. However, some medical experts view this drug as no different to cocaine because of the negative effects it has on an individual’s brain overtime.

It is important for students to recognise that each every coping mechanism they employ has a direct effect on their mental health, whether they are aware of it or not.

The use of Ritalin is common amongst South African university students because it is easily accessible to them. However, Ritalin has been proven to depersonalise an individual by making them dependant on the drug for everyday basic functions. If the drug is suddenly stopped, one’s mental health may completely deteriorate and in some cases, lead to suicide. There are multiple coping mechanisms that students employ but how can one confidently say that what they are doing to survive is actually helping them? Within the youth, it is not rare to find individuals that chase quick thrills because they feel good in the moment.

The blur in the picture depicts how people do not deal with their problems. This is how they see the world after they drink their R2 tequila instead of talking about their problems. Photo by: Dylan Coetzee

Black Transgenerational Trauma BY: BOITUMELO MABALE

he notion that black South Africans stigmatise mental health completely ignores the fact that they have suddenly been included into these conversations after centuries of being violently victimised. If depression and other types of mental health disorders are inheritable, what makes trauma any different? Transgenerational trauma is when the trauma of first-generation victims is inherited by further generations. This is the result of complex post-traumatic stress disorder mechanisms. As a form of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), the results from brain scans of PTSD brains will be different to normal brains. According to a CBS News report, brain scans of people exposed to traumatic events and environments have revealed that the physical brain changes. “There’s something different in your brains,” says Dr Jasmeet Hayes of Boston University. The result of changes in the brain is there being genetic changes that, like other mental disorders, could be inheritable. This is explored by studies on

descendants of holocaust victims inheriting this genetic change. According to the Holocaust Exposure Induced Intergenerational Effects on FKBP5 Methylation report, there are evident biological changes in the brain that are inherited from holocaust victims to further generations. “Biological alterations associated with PTSD and/or other stress-related disorders have also been observed in offspring of trauma survivors who do not themselves report trauma exposure or psychiatric disorder.” Oppositions to this study state that trauma is a personal matter. However, this research provides answers for why descendants of the victimised fear similar situations or symbolisms that their ancestors did. And when applied to South African society, it makes complete sense for it to be true. Assumptions on black people stigmatising mental health fail to acknowledge that racial atrocities committed against non-white South Africans only ended 25 years ago. This is not enough time to erase trauma. As black people, we are aware of the fact that we are as human as any other race. Making us as susceptible to

mental and physical damage as much as all humans are. However, when placed in mentally and physically traumatising situations, the human spirit does one of two things. Break down or create a coping mechanism to survive through situations. The latter being what black people have adapted to doing. “Drink water and you’ll be fine. That is what you must do. That is all you can do when placed in terrible situations like the ones we were subjected to. What else can you do but endure? Breaking down is the same as surrendering. I have too much pride for that.” Says Rebecca Hlongwane, an 88-year-old woman. Therefore, the notion that descendants of colonised people are able to inherit trauma provides an essence of clarity. Black people have been forced to condition themselves into the mindset of, “we are built to endure pain.” However, this emphasises the magnitude of irreversible trauma. Could this be the reason why symbolisms of apartheid strike fear into the hearts of the ‘born-free’ generation? Perhaps, this is what black people also need to address.

ILLUSTATION BY: BOITUMELO MABALE

The painting shows a woman who is smiling very slightly. This is to show that when you make smiling a habit, you do not just dive into it. You have to ease yourself into it until you are comfortable enough to show the world your smile in all its glory. Oil painting by: Boitumelo Mabale.

This Thing Called Life...

BY: PATIENCE MASIZA

iving with a mental illness does not define you as a person nor does it make you crazy. Everyday scholars are dealing with different stress factors out of fear and uncertainty of their future careers. All of these conditions can be caused by trauma of the past, broken family backgrounds, depression and a lot of other contributing factors. In return, the brain is disturbed in various areas of cognitive functions and emotion regularity. This indeed takes a toll on the success of their academics and social relations with other people. Yet we are still not a growing movement of people renewing their thoughts on mental illnesses.

Rates of psychological distress are high among university students. Evidence suggests that only one in six students receive minimally adequate mental health

“Depression has become the disease of our youth’s civilization.” treatment. Not a lot is mentioned on how to deal with these everyday pressures faced by the average university student, and people living with these illnesses are in denial of their situations because of the way mental illnesses are stigmatized in society today. The risk of not providing the necessary counselling services to someone in need of it, is not worth taking. As human beings our soul function is caring for one another, but where is the love?

Although different media platforms try to raise awareness on this societal worry, academic institutions do not go the extra mile to ensure the well-being of their ‘highly valued’ student body. Simply giving out a list of reachable mental health sources is not effective. The University’s administrators should dig deeper to understand the challenges students face and respond to their mental health needs. The assumption that all accepted students are psychologically fit and not suffering from any mental illness is a myth. “Depression has become the disease of our youth’s civilization.” Emotional pain is not something that should be hidden away and never spoken about. There is truth in your pain. There is growth in your pain. But only if it is first brought out into the open. Friendly reminder that you are doing your best and that’s all that matters. Make yourself a priority. “The dust always settles. It’s up to you to calm the wind.”

ILLUSTATION BY: BOITUMELO MABALE

G the Huncho posing outside the St Michael

and St George Cathedral, Grahamstown. Picture by: Patience Masiza

This stigma is entirely flawed but it is a stigma nonetheless. As a result, the entire sector in some instances is filled with negative energy. This ends up leaving those who want to seek help second guessing. As a result, hundreds and hundreds of South Africans are left undiagnosed. This is quite simply unacceptable and should no longer be accepted regardless of circumstance. The state of mental health and its awareness is in tatters in South Africa. When will our sluggish society catch up? People are fighting. Alone. Stigmas created in social situations are directly affecting the lives of others by enhancing mental health strain. It is time for change.

It is Time for Society to Evolve BY: DYLAN COETZEE

ounselling. Therapy. Psychologists. These are often intimidating words to those who need it the most. Modern society has most certainly evolved. However, society in South Africa seems to be that constant step behind.

According to the SACAP (South African College of Applied Psychology), as many as one in every six South Africans suffer from mental strain through substance abuse and other avenues. These are indeed alarming figures, even more so when the reality that not many of people seek the attention that they need.

It becomes quite clear within a more localised environment such as Rhodes University. The evolution of society has clearly lagged. A seemingly obvious perception towards this sector has become very clear. Students and people that fill our immediate society created this stigma that ‘only really messed up people go for counselling’ or a simple case of being too ‘proud’.

The awareness of mental health is a start. Get the nation talking. People need to be educated on how saturated our society is with mental health illness. On how to get diagnosed. On how to beat their illness and how to be there for those who are in the trenches fighting for their mental health stability. Simple education through schooling systems is the ideal start in the balancing of mental health.

Going for counselling should be the equivalent of going to the Doctor for a flu. There is no need for fuss or nerves surrounding a simple appointment. The time is now for our sluggish society to change gear and evolve with its people. The importance of mental health is often questioned and even more so ignored completely. Society needs to be in the position where the importance of mental health is not a concern because everyone already understands how important it is. The time is now.

"The state of mental health and its awareness is in tatters in South Africa.”

mi l ing a

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BY: ISIPHO BAKANA

he door opened swiftly and she was standing behind it with a smile on her face. Her room smelt of fresh coffee and Cantu Coconut Curling Cream. A boring brown blanket was draped over the blue couch she had dragged to her room at the beginning of the year. She sat comfortably on the bed with her feet snuggled in cute unicorn slippers which lay gracefully on the small brown chair in front of her.

Charmaine Tshabalala, a fourth year Psychology student, smiled at her phone and tried to play it off by placing her hand over her mouth to muffle her giggle. Her beautiful brown skin glistened under the warm light of her bedroom lamp and

she stared quietly and expectantly. “It’s an on and off thing,” she unpredictably explained. “A lot is happening. A lot has happened in just one night,” she babbles. “It’s been on and off for 10 years. Since 2009 actually. We’ve been through a lot and we’re planning on staying together and not break up after this year”, as though realizing she had given away too much than she was willing to, she patted the space besides her in search of her phone. She smiled again. More widely this time, more openly. “Dammit I’m old,” she exclaimed when recalling what her road to Rhodes was like. She was never able to maintain eye contact as she spoke. Her eyes were looking up at the roof as she used her fingers to keep track of the years as she was counting

them out loud. Her ‘first first year’ was in 2013 but she could not stay in school because ‘finances dribbled’. Her tone gradually lowered as she recounted this. A bitter memory, you could tell, but she tried to cover it up by being active in her expressions. She then smiled after a while, realizing she had allowed a frown to form. This made sense because Anele Ndimande described her as “hyper”, which gives the impression that she could not sit still. And it was true. She continued and recollected how she dropped out of school and stayed home for three years. Her shoulders slumped while on the topic and the consistent smile which was on her face dropped a bit.

There are around 50% to 60% of students who drop out of higher learning institutions. A study which was conducted at institutions of higher learning from 2008 showed that 35% of students who are enrolled actually graduate in record time. Dr Andre van Zyl says that there are various different reasons why students choose to drop out of varsity. He says, “They include academic reasons where students do not fit into the higher learning environment, logistics like transport and accommodation, finance and even inadequate food or poverty.” He expands by saying that higher education is seen as something which is very complex and the environment is only for the fittest. Charmaine had her second first year in 2016 after being accepted

by Rhodes and she did Law for two years before deciding that she was doing it for the wrong reasons and dropping it. “I’m done with psych though,” she squealed excitedly. “I just need two more credits in order to graduate”. She placed her short legs on the light blue linen which neatly covered her small bed. Her toned legs could be made out from underneath her light blue onesie and the gym bag that laid on the other side of the room were all subtle indicators that she works out. “I don’t do it to lose weight or anything. I’ve been fortunate enough to have a nice body. I just go to the gym in order to tone my body and keep fit,” she explained with a smile. The smile disappeared and her body tensed up a bit when asked about how comfortable she is in her own skin.

She clutched her phone in her hands and sat in a foetal position with her feet on the chair before drawing in a breath. “My insecurities started in primary,” her eyes darted off. She played music and apologised for the fact that she had to answer a text. Upon completion, she continued. “I was bullied for my skin tone in grade 1. I carried that everywhere with me. As I grew up I saw people loving and embracing their dark skin. I saw people like me on TV and I started loving me because I looked just like them. Representation really does matter.” She smiled and tucked her fingers in her curly her. Lumko Mbili described Charmaine as very sweet because “she lets me play with her hair”. And what beautiful hair it was.

“As I grew up I saw people loving and embracing their dark skin.”

Breast cancer survivor looks up at the camera with gleaming eyes. She now sees the future through a new lens. Photo by: Lerato Radinne.

She’ll be the Light in the Dark By Lerato Radinne

“O

kay, girl. Look at you popping or whatever!” she says as she walks into the room. Her vibrant energy fills the space, her lightness glowing brighter than the sun and in that moment, people stop to stare in awe of her beautiful energy. Velisa Sishuba is her name. She was born in South Africa but moved to England when she was only a year old. She stayed in England for five years and then moved back to South Africa. Her move to England is something she views as fundamental to her development as a child because it shaped her personality, “I have always been loud and out there, even as a child” she says.

As she started to get lost in her thoughts, something carried her back to the present. Judging by the way her facial expression changed, something seemed to have dragged from her happy place to a hard place. “Coming back to South Africa was hard because being the only person in my group who did not know South African

during her time of need. However, her strong resilient character would let her fall in a retrograde. In 2016, she discovered that she no longer had cancer. The experience made her a much stronger woman. Her closest friend, Alex Naidoo would indeed agree that she is a strong woman. “I don’t even know how to describe her man but Vee is, yoh is Vee is strong hey” he says. He continues to speak about her positive energy and how she changes everyone’s mood. “Sometimes when I do not feel good about myself, I know I can count on Vee to say something that will completely change my opinion about myself.”

“Its so hard for me not to stay positive because my happiness is all I have, you know?”

Growing up in England had its ups and downs for Velisa. Her face lit up as she recalled her childhood memories, the wind seemed to be perfectly in sync with the slow bating of her eyelashes... she lets out a little chuckle. “I remember this one time, there was festival at my school, St Martins Primary School” she could not stop her joyous laughter as she reminisces the sweet memories, a child-like joy filled her face. “I just remember that time being so magical because we had to perform for the Queen and make our little hats, it was so amazing” she says, with the biggest smile on her face. She spoke of the Queen’s white dress and her horses as though they reminded of her a time when her smile and her joy were pure.

languages, I felt excluded” she says. Velisa begins she recall how much her life changed when she moved to South Africa. A long silent pause, followed by a deep sigh as she looks up to the sky “and then I was diagnosed with Cancer” she says in a melancholic tone. For a brief moment, there was complete silence. The birds stopped chirping and the wind seemed to halt. “I felt like people did not understand what I was going through, it was the first I had ever felt that alone” Growing with both her parents and a younger brother, Anda Sishuba, Velisa felt as though she had no one in her life

Velisa is certainly a woman with a strong character who does not let anything get her down. She wakes up every morning and paints a smile on her face, regardless of what she is going through. “Its so hard for me not to stay positive because my happiness is all I have, you know?” she says. Kene Motaung, Velisa’s closest friend recalls all the good memories she made with her. She says all she can recall are good memories with Velisa because she always positive, she can never have a rainy day because of her aura. “She is just so beautiful and energetic” she says. Velisa stands from grass and dusts herself off “its been great, stay beautiful and stay shining” she says.

"stay Beautiful & stay Shiningâ&#x20AC;?

Photo by: Lerato Radinne llustration by Boitumelo Mabale

Bianca Matthis smiles as she thinks about how she is now accepting of herself. Photo by: Dylan Coetzee

Body Positivity

In a world where perfection is emphasized, it is hard to please everybody and be eveerybody's favourite. No one has the perfect body, no one has the perfect face because perfection does not exist. The unfortunate reality of our society is that perfection is an aspiration that we are expected to strive towards. It is important to recognize that everone has flaws and that is okay. Your imperfections are what make you beautiful. Instead of distorting your own sense of self by dreaming for the impossible, why not learn to Some days you just have to create your own sunshine and your own version of perfection based on your own perception. Self-worth does not start in the mirror, it starts in the mind. Be kind to yourself. To be worthy does not mean to be perfect.

beauty is not the face...

PERFECTION IS OVERRATED

... BEAUTY IS THE LIGHT IN THE HEART.

I Am Not Enough

NEVER REGRET ANYTHING...

...THAT MADE YOU SMILE.

Hotline Bling Suicide: 0800567567 Rape: 0214479762 Assault: 0861322322 Depression: 0800121314 Emergency: 112 ADHD Help line: 0800554433 Trauma line: 0800205026 Mental Health line: 0112344837