MENTAL HEALTH ZINE
RHSU Mental Health Network's
Let's talk about mental health... Hi I'm Laura, the Co-President (Welfare and Diversity) in the Students' Union. Part of our work as an SU is to look after your wellbeing, and supporting your mental wellbeing is a key part of that. Mental health doesn’t just refer to those who have a mental illness: everyone has a mental wellbeing to look after. With this in mind, this year, we established the first ever RHSU Mental Health Network, chaired by Molly, a third year Psychology student. The network has introduced a range of events to make mental wellbeing a priority. They've created a series of 'Let's Talk About Mental Health' events allowing students to share their experiences of mental health in a judgement-free space, facilitated Student Minds' Look After Your Mate workshops, handed out fruit in Bedford Library and run the #itsokaytotalk social media campaign amongst so much more. The content of this zine was created by Royal Holloway students, and has been designed as an opportunity for people to explore the subject of mental health.
Laura Lewis
Molly Austen
The facts:
1 in 4 people in the UK will experience a mental health problem each year and rates are thought to be even higher amongst the student population. A recent survey by the National Union of Students found that 78% of respondents had experienced mental health problems in the last year and 33% have had suicidal thoughts. There are so many things that can trigger mental distress in students: course deadlines, exams and financial difficulties. It's clear that student mental health is something we need to talk about more, to tackle the stigma and empower people to seek help when they need it.
It's Not a Crime to Feel Worthless.
(But I promise you aren't, and these steps should help you to realise that, too).
Mental health services are rising in universities in the U.K., and I personally find Royal Holloway to be extremely helpful and open when it comes to mental health. But for those of you who aren't so comfortable with discussing your problem with a doctor or counsellor, here are some little steps for you. It doesn't matter if you're having a bad day or if you suffer from a full blown anxiety disorder - I'm hoping these will help regardless of your personal situation.
1. Take everything one step at a time. I'm not talking in terms of ‘just get that essay out the way’ or ‘now just get your lectures done’ here. When I wake up feeling horribly anxious, I know that I can't think about a massive day. So, I focus on baby steps. First, I'll tell myself ‘just try and sit up in bed’. Then I'll move on to ‘just try and brush your teeth’. ‘Now try and put some comfy clothes on’ and so on and so forth. And before I know it, I'm usually up, dressed, fed and feeling a whole lot better than if I'd stayed in bed overthinking. 2. No one is expecting you to do more than you're capable of at any given moment. Sometimes, we wake up and just can't deal with the world. That's okay. It is not a crime to feel worthless and unmotivated. But, if you do wake up like this, still try and get out of bed, take a shower, have something to eat, put a fresh pair of pyjamas on and then get back into bed. You'll feel like you've accomplished something (and you have – go you for getting out of bed!) and you won't get stuck in an endless cycle of waking up, feeling rubbish, and going straight back to sleep. 3. When you're ready, try and talk to someone. Not even necessarily about your mental health problem (though of course if you do feel comfortable doing this, absolutely go for it). But just seeing a friend or partner or family member and putting the world to rights can boost you. You'll feel less alone, you'll feel purposeful, and you'll have accomplished something for the day. 4. Isolating yourself is the worst thing you can do. This isn't meant to make you feel rubbish if isolating yourself is your go to when you're feeling depressed or anxious. But, take it from someone who lost an awful lot of friends when she was 16 through not wanting to accept help from anyone when she was depressed – it only makes the situation worse. People will want to help. Thankfully, the stigma surrounding mental health is gradually breaking, so people who don't suffer from mental illness want to understand. Setting yourself one goal a day, or every few days, or once a week, to see a friend and catch up will do wonders for you, plus it's something you can build on. For further help I recommend charities like Mind, Childline, and Young Minds.
Jennie Brunskill
Carly Newman talks about mental health
Problems with my mental health probably started a lot earlier than I realised. I remember being paranoid at school; constantly worried about what people thought of me and worried that events like ‘Own Clothes Day’ were set up to make me look stupid. I spent every weekend with my Dad from the age of six and he would constantly slate my Mum. Although I didn’t believe the stuff he said, I still had to carry it all with me, and it used to wear me down. For six years, from when I was about eight years old, my Mum was the victim of really severe domestic abuse due to her partner at the time, a lot of which I witnessed. I always knew it wasn’t right, but it was just something that happened at home, and then I would go to school as normal in the morning. There was one occasion when he had said it was my fault, and that was the first time that I selfharmed. I punished myself for the fact that my Mum was hurt because of me.
It was at this point that my Head of Year at school approached me, and my Mum, and gave us the contact details of No5 which is a free, confidential counselling service in Reading, which offers up to 20 sessions of counselling to 10-25 year olds. After some hesitation, I called them, and it was best thing that I have ever done. My counselling was incredible and completely changed my outlook. It was during my counselling that my Mum’s now ex-partner broke into our house at 3 am and attacked my Mum. I wasn’t at home, and this time it was bad. Worse than ever before. This time he ended up in prison. I carried so much blame for not being there, but luckily my counsellor allowed me to talk out these feelings. My counselling allowed me to find ways of dealing with things. It allowed things to be better. For the first time in years.
This all contributed to the break down I had when I was 13. I completely shut down. I had refused to move to London with my Dad and he had retaliated that ‘I would never get anywhere’, so not only was I battling with my mental health, I also had to ensure I did well academically. I spent all day at school completely silent, for months on end. I remember one of my closest friends asking me if somebody had died. Things also deteriorated with my Dad. He began sending streams of abusive text messages. This went on until I was 17. Even now, things with him can be difficult but I have learnt to not take on board what he says.
My journey with No5 was so incredible that I became a Young Ambassador for them, and now am Lead Young Ambassador. I give talks at schools, organise events, and take outreach projects and workshops out to the young people of Reading to raise awareness of mental health issues and break the stigma. I also am on the Equalities Council at uni. I work with our Mental Health rep on events, and I recently organised Jonny Benjamin MBE to join us to share the incredible story of his journey with mental health in order to raise awareness of mental health, suicide prevention and break the stigma of mental health issues.
Mental Health: An International Student's Perspective Studying abroad is fun. It should be. The problem with studying abroad is that nobody ever tells you about the problems of homesickness and cultural shock – and most importantly, how easily one can slip into a state of depression. Nothing quite prepared me for the first winter of my life. Mother said, “During winter, take care. You’re born in the warmth of the tropical sun, your body will need time to adjust.” But it took me exactly 2 months to realize seasonal affective disorder (SAD) was a thing. Oversleeping, increased mood swings, loss in appetite, and hypersensitivity to everything that’s happening around me. I thought they were normal. Besides lectures and seminars, I mostly stayed in my room. I have no friends because I feel different from them. All I can think of – my closest friends and families, back home. In a completely different time zone, an entirely separate continent. Isn’t studying abroad supposed to be fun? The reality of studying abroad is this: you have left everything that is familiar to you behind. Your family. Your friends. Your country. You chose to leave a comfortable place so you can explore the world. A bad mental health may not have been exactly what you expected, but you knew better than to expect a smooth-sailing journey away from home. So what is more important, now, is to recover the same courage that made you decide to venture outside your home country. You can face the challenges because you are brave. You are not alone.
Willow Wong, RHSU International Rep
"You are not broken, you are not worthless"
I think I realised at about 14 that mental health was important, I realised that keeping your mind healthy was just as important as your body. I’ve struggled with mental health for most of my life. I’ve learnt that even when everything is going well and you have a smile on your face, you can still struggle. I can be having a laugh with my friends and all I can think of is how that night I am going to go home and be miserable. I will resort to crying, screaming, being self destructive and no one around me will suspect a thing. This is the difficulty with mental health. Everyone treats it as a taboo and many won’t ever admit that they need help, but looking at this now as an adult I can agree that reaching out is the first step. I have never told anyone about my mental health but I have fallen apart and needed picking up again when I was at my lowest, and I was greeted with love, support and kindness. It is important to remember you are not alone, people who are there for you don’t need to know your story if you don’t want them to, it is YOUR story – and that’s okay, it is totally okay. We all sometimes just need to cry, eat ice-cream together and cuddle on the sofa and not feel the need to explain the reason why. Everyone is different and everyone copes in different ways. Yet many of us have the same problems. I have felt unwanted, hurt, broken and like no one would ever care.
I know what it feels like to feel like you don’t fit in, whether that’s outwardly or you feel like your body doesn’t belong to you. No one is ever going through something that has never been experienced and I find strength in that. To know that somewhere out there, some brave soul is, or has been through the same thing and come out the other side. There is something beautiful in that. It may seem like the hardest thing in the world to do, and when you are having a crisis it can be impossible to convince yourself, but I get in a loop and tell myself it over and over again. Eventually your brain listens. My advice to anyone out there struggling. You are not broken, you are not worthless – you are a really strong individual. It is the hardest thing in the world to have to conquer your own brain every single day, and that makes us pretty bad ass. Confront your fears square in the face, and accept that it sure is going to be a tough battle but in the end the climb is worth the view. As the tattoo on my foot states: “Tough times don’t last, tough people do.” So join me for the Disney films, cuddles, take-aways and laughter, and trust me when you can feel good for even a fraction of an evening it is progress.
Rhiannon Cole
Support Support at Royal Holloway: Contact the College's Wellbeing team to find out what support is available, or if you're worried about a friend, by emailing: wellbeing@rhul.ac.uk To make an appointment with the Health Centre, visit the north-east corner of Founder's Building or call 01784 443131. You can register with the Counselling service by visiting Founders West 171 (near the Picture Gallery). Registration takes a few minutes and then you will be able to arrange an appointment. You can contact Counselling by calling 01784 443128 or emailing counselling@royalholloway.ac.uk. Open Monday to Friday, 9am-4pm. For information about support that the Students' Union offers, email vpwelfare@su.rhul.ac.uk. The SU also offers specific support for academic and housing issues.
Emergency support: In an emergency you should seek help from the emergency services and notify campus security. Emergency Services: 999 Surrey Police (non urgent): 101 NHS (non urgent): 111 Campus Security: 01784 443063
Other support: London Nightline is a confidential advice centre run by students. They are open from 18:00 - 08:00 term time only. All students are very understanding and have received extensive training. Contact them: 0207 631 0101 listening@nightline.org.uk (Aim to respond within 48 hours) Instant message (via Skype): http://www.nightline.org.uk/content/online-listening Skype: http://www.nightline.org.uk/content/call-us-on-skype
The Samaritans can be contacted 24/7 throughout the year. The quickest way to get in touch with them is to call them. Your call is made anonymously, as are any emails you send. The Samaritans are there to listen to everybody, no matter what you are going through. 01932 844444 116 123 jo@samaritans.org (email addresses are removed before a volunteer sees your message and they aim to respond within 12 hours) Local branch: North West Surrey Samaritans, Samaritan Centre, Ledger Drive, Addlestone, Surrey, KT15 1AT
The Health Centre also provides students access to Talking Therapies, an NHS service that can provide help with issues such as anxiety, depression, stress and phobias. You can self-refer to this service. Contact them here: 0300 365 2000 E-mail: talkingtherapies@berkshire.nhs.uk