Help fight the stigma of mental health and suicide!!! Below are some activities that can be done on campus. Both students and administrators can help organize these events.*
- Organize a mental health fair at your school, to be held at the student health center, student commons area, in the quad, or a similar well-trafficked area. Ask mental health professionals to volunteer their time to answer questions about mental health. Distribute information about mental health and mental illness. Offer professional heath screenings.
- Educate your students, faculty and staff at your school about the warning signs of depression and suicide. Be sure to provide a list of resources so that everyone can come away with places to turn if they think they or someone they know may need help.
- Contact one of the Missouri Regional Resource Centers to find about free training and services that are available in your community.
- Ask your school to include information about mental health and suicide prevention, and resources available in your community, in the next mailing to parents and in Freshmen Orientation.
- Stay up-to-date about current mental health legislation. Have students sign petitions and write to your congressmen in a support of bills that will prevent suicide and raise awareness about mental health issues. Contact your elected officials and encourage them to support this legislation. For more information, go to the Suicide Prevention Action Network (SPAN) USA page http://capwiz.com/spanusa/issues/?style=D.
- Apply to be a Field Liaison (http://www.spanusa.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.viewPage&page_id=B58A709F-03DE-2664-EBD4C8A4F50DDD8F) with the Suicide Prevention Action Network (SPAN) USA. The program seeks to recruit 435 Field Liaisons for every U.S. Congressional District, to help coordinate suicide prevention and advocacy efforts.
- Observe national mental health days, or declare certain weeks for mental health awareness on your campus. National Suicide Prevention Week occurs in the second week of September, Mental Illness Awareness Week occurs during the second week of October, and May is Mental Health Month – so you can create a mental health awareness campaign to commemorate any of these dates. During these campaigns, offer resources of warning signs, statistics where students can get help, and tables where students can make stress balls, get a message to relieve stress, trace their bodies on paper to promote healthy body image to other various interactive activities.
- Promote mental health awareness and positive mental health during final exams, graduation, the holidays, or any other stressful time for students on your campus.
- Speak about mental health issues and awareness to health classes, psychology classes, social work classes, or any other class you feel is appropriate.
- Invite professional speakers (like those on the National Mental Health Awareness Campaign) to educate your campus on mental health awareness and taking away the stereotypes surrounding the issues. Your counseling center may be able to help you contact a local mental health organization for help with this.
- Distribute information all year long, by using posters, tables, fliers, a message board showing one statistic daily, t-shirts etc. Use information that targets specific mental health problems as well as general problems like stigma.
- Organize a walk, run or other event to raise money for mental health awareness. Use the money to expand your outreach or donate the money to a local health organization or national mental health organization that you would like to support.
- Coordinate with your counseling center or local mental health professionals to organize a support group for young people to discuss their problems or a specific problem i.e. eating disorders, depression, abuse, divorce, etc.. The group will need to be supervised by a mental health professional (psychologist, psychiatrist, social worker or anyone qualified). If organizing your own group through the guidance of a professional isn’t available, then find out where support groups meet and provide information on the groups to students.
- Be a friend to those with mental illness. Find out about the “What A Difference A Friend Makes” campaign. This is a national anti-stigma campaign whose goal is to encourage, educate, and inspire 18 to 25 year olds to step up and support friends they know who are experiencing a mental health problem. Campaign materials include TV and radio PSAs, brochures, and an interactive website, http://www.whatadifference.org.
- Learn more about suicide survivor support and advocacy options at the survivor sections of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (http://www.afsp.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.viewPage&page_id=742A015C-D811-979A-AB84379C813F8D93) and American Association for Suicidology (http://www.afsp.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.viewPage&page_id=742A015C-D811-979A-AB84379C813F8D93) Websites.
- Partner with fraternities, sororities, athletes, religious and minority organizations, student government or other student organizations to promote mental health together.
- Promote fun events for mental health days or weeks, possibly a concert, volleyball tournament, ropes course focused on helping other developing a sense of community, talent show highlighting people’s individual qualities, or anything you think other students will enjoy.
- Have your committee develop a saying or slogan to promote mental health awareness in your school and use the slogan in all of your distributions.
- Volunteer at a local crisis hotline. Call a hotline in your area to sign up for their next training session.
- Send a message of thanks to the local volunteers, trainers, and support group facilitators in your area to let them know that the important work they do is appreciated.
- Write a letter to your school newspaper to support mental health events on campus.
SHARE THIS LIST WITH CLASSMATES, FRIENDS, CO-WORKERS, ROOMMATES, PROFESSORS AND OTHERS.
GET CREATIVE!! Develop your own ideas that you think are important for your campus and community that would make an impact!!!!
*(Material on this page had been adapted from the Suicide Prevention: Get Involved page on Missouri Department of Mental Health: Division of Comprehensive Psychiatric Service’s website and the National Mental Health Awareness Campaign)