Graphic by Selina Ding.
Graphic by Selina Ding.

Student voices on mental health

May 31, 2018

Editor’s note: Over the course of the past year, Whitman students and administrators have made efforts to address mental health issues among students, from scheduling mental health awareness presentations to promoting an SGA-sponsored app.

Staff members wrote the two student opinions below, and they have chosen to omit their bylines due to the personal nature of their stories. As always, the opinions they voice are their own and do not represent the position of The Black & White.

The statistics represented in the graphic associated with this story are from a 2017 Black & White survey of 115 students across all grades. To view that story, click here.

Change the way you talk to people with anxiety

For me, anxiety is like my thoughts are a car that’s been set in park, but someone is pressing all the way on the gas pedal; everything is revving out of control, but I’m not making any progress. It’s like I’m trapped on a rollercoaster, and the seat belt is way too tight and I just want to get off. Saying this out loud makes me want to scream. Just writing it makes me sweat.

I’m telling you this because the mental health presentations, run by the Mental Illness Awareness Campaign Team at Whitman, didn’t say everything I think they should have. While I agreed with many of the statements on how to best communicate with someone who has anxiety, I think there’s a lot more to say. There’s a better way to address someone with anxiety that reminds them they’re bigger than the illness—but doesn’t pry too much, or say anything too artificial.

So many students walk around with the burden of anxiety: according to a Black & White survey conducted last year, 40 percent of Whitman students suffer from mental illnesses, while nationally that number is only 20 percent. And anxiety affects nearly 33 percent of the school.

Some people are going to be triggered by social situations, others by schoolwork and others by something more specific. To someone who doesn’t have anxiety, their reactions might seem ridiculous. But to someone with anxiety, it’s hard to control. The mental health presentations said this, but I’ll reiterate: in this situation, telling someone to just “calm down” or “stop overreacting” isn’t going to help them. In fact, it will probably only make them frustrated because they feel like they can’t do that.

Instead, someone should be reminded that they’re stronger than their anxiety. Tell them that what they’re feeling isn’t the reality. One of the most motivational things I’ve ever heard is that I can’t let anxiety live my life for me. If I feel like I can’t start my homework because it’s so overwhelming, I need someone—or hopefully someday just myself—to remind me that I can start my homework, and my anxiety is just trying to trick me.

My anxiety lives in me permanently, like the characters in the Disney movie “Inside Out.” The anxious voice is gruff, rude and cries a lot, and the normal voice is my normal, calm self. When the anxious voice is yelling at me, I need a way to remember I can overpower those feelings.

Saying things like, “Don’t worry, you’re not going to fail the test,” or “Everything is going to be fine” isn’t as effective as it sounds. Truthfully, everything might not be fine—there is no way to guarantee that it will be. It sounds sad, but it’s helpful. It’s in the person’s own power to to make sure that everything is going to be fine. Instead, say things like, “You can get through this,” or “You have the power to do this.” These statements are uplifting, and they give the person something to think about in that moment. Just saying, “You won’t fail this test” might just add to that person’s pressure because they want to please you.

Anxiety can be really difficult to deal with at Whitman. To truly help out a family member or friend that’s struggling, you have to be careful what you say. But, it’s possible to conquer bouts of anxiety—the person just needs some encouragement.

Administrators should provide safe spaces for students with panic attacks

My heart was pounding, pounding in my chest—escalating, accelerating. Too fast. My vision blurred, and I could feel myself shaking. My whole body felt hot, like it was on fire, and I couldn’t form a coherent thought to save my life.

I rushed into the hallway and looked around, terrified. I didn’t know what to do. While I was scared of strangers seeing me in this state, I was also scared of people I did know seeing me. I couldn’t handle having somebody near me, let alone talking to me.

I ended up hiding in the second floor bathroom for twenty minutes, locked in a stall, standing straight up, trying desperately to calm myself down.

I don’t have panic attacks at school regularly, but when I do, I don’t know where to go to calm myself down. I try to go to my counselor, but the times I’ve gone and she hasn’t been there, it’s made everything worse. I’ve felt like my one chance at finding a safe place has been ripped away.

Because panic attacks require time and space for the person to calm down, administrators should work with teachers to create a list of open, staffed classrooms that will serve as a safe space for students experiencing anxiety or having a panic attack to go to when they feel overwhelmed.

Resource counselor Kari Wislar could reach out to teachers to ask who would be willing to open their classrooms during planning or lunch periods. Counselors could then share this list with students they know have anxiety or panic attacks, or post the list on a wall in the counseling office so the classrooms are easily accessible by any student who finds themselves in need.

While Wislar said she would prefer for students to talk to a different counselor if theirs isn’t available, she agrees that there should be a safe place for students to go. To ensure the system wouldn’t be abused and to secure student safety, students could be required to check-in with a counselor, or have the teacher hosting them send them an email.

Counselors and administration support the idea. Both Wislar and principal Alan Goodwin said they would be open to help create the system for next year, and about a dozen teachers have already expressed interest in being part of the program.

No other student should have to stand in a cramped, dirty bathroom stall, or stand outside their counselor’s office, with their whole body shaking as they struggle to take a breath. Mental health problems are increasing across all grades—ensuring that students in crisis always have a safe space would be a good step in the right direction for supporting these students.

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