contact with the Wellbeing Team if you feel you need support but don’t feel confident enough to go in is to email them using: well-being@hsdc. ac.uk To find out how HSDC students feel about their mental health I conducted a survey and received some very thought provoking results. I discovered 4 out of 5 of the students questioned said they had been affected by poor mental health. One student said “ mental health has affected me because it has changed my confidence.” Another said it affected them as they suffer from “anxiety and depression” however a third student said “ I haven’t had any experiences like this at college”.
Mental Health Matters
I n this article I will be talking about mental health and its effects on college students. Exploring topics which show what it’s like to struggle with mental health and how to overcome it with the help of family, friends. I will also outline the HSDC college facilities available if you need support, as well as tips on how to look after yourself if you're struggling with your mental health. In our day to day lives many people suffer with poor mental health especially students aged 16- 18. What causes these mental health problems in young adolescents are stress, isolation, sub- stance abuse and trauma. Things such as stress cause fatigue, change in awareness, stability and concentration which if not seen to or talked about can become worse and develop into anxiety and depression. Apa.org says that among college students “anxiety is the top presenting concern at 41.6% followed by depression at 36.4%” which affects students' performance and wellbeing in college and at home. As you settle into college life it can be a challeng- ing time with ups and downs along the way be- cause in both college life and home life, everyone one knows how difficult things may be. However, there is help close at hand as HSDC has a Health and Wellbeing team who can support you. I inter- viewed Carl Milner (Student Advisor- Welfare and Safeguarding) about what he and his team can do to support you. Carl started by saying, “ we have got that crisis offer that sort of mental health first aid support and can also refer outside depending on the severity like GP support or CAMHS sup- port, we do also have a college counsellor .” I then asked Carl who you can speak to about getting that support and he said “there is a college nurse onsite who also deals with safeguard issues and is the mental health first aid lead.” In the Wellbeing department all staff members are trained and are always there to give you sup- port when needed. To get in contact with any of the wellbeing team,“ you can self-refer, but many students go to their tutors as they know them from the course and they will bring the student to the wellbeing team.” Another way to get in
I also asked, Do you feel your mental health was affected more this year or last year? The majority said their mental health was affected more last year due to being isolated and being in one place with not much support around them because of Covid. One student said “I think being stuck in one place definitely contributed to my stress.” Whereas someone else found that their mental health was affected more this year saying “my mental health was definitely affected more this year because I found school was a struggle as I wasn’t surrounded by good people'' . I then asked whether moving to college has had a positive or negative effect on their mental health and the majority responded that college has had a good impact. One studented added“ it has af- fected me in a good way because it meant I could have a fresh start and make some new friends.'' Another said “ I feel I can be myself” whilst a third said the new freedoms that come with college has had a mixed effect, as “it can come to be too much freedom at times.”
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