Editors note and trigger warning: The following article includes mention of suicidal ideations and other mental health topics.
Campuses across the country are feeling the effects of a mental health crisis affecting young college students. The Collegiate Mental Health Annual Report for 2021 shares statistics for 180 institutions and found the following statistics surrounding mental health:
- 33% of students experienced serious suicidal ideation
- 9.4% of students have attempted suicide
- 26.7% of students have engaged in non-suicidal self-injury
Students also reported an increase in concern about their anxiety, stress, academic performance and trauma from 2020 to 2021.
This crisis is causing colleges to get more creative with their health services, and UT Martin is no exception. Many institutions are looking into solutions including group therapy and telehealth. UT Martin has introduced telehealth to their list of services offered by Student Health and Counseling. This allows students to access help or treatment after business hours and also allows for more openings for students to schedule appointments.
On the UT Martin campus, programs are in place to help students through different mental health challenges. The Student Health and Counseling Center is available at 609 Lee St. Martin, Tennessee 38237. The center provides counseling services, mental health awareness programs, and physical health services. The center’s page on the UTM website has links to sign up for an appointment, and students can also call (731) 881-7750.
These solutions still are not solving the problem in its entirety because an average full-time college counselor has about 120-student caseload, according to the Center for Collegiate Mental Health Annual Report for the 2021 year.
The American government is starting to take action against this crises, as it was announced last month that there are plans to award millions of dollars through grants to grow 24/7 mental health and substance abuse care in communities around the country. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra had the following to say about the financial support:
“Today we’re talking about providing to Americans 24/7 support for crisis care. That’s something that’s only been available to some, in some places. But depending on your income and ZIP code, you could be totally out of luck. That’s going to start to change.”
The UT Martin Care Team shared the following tips with The Pacer writing staff for taking care of mental health during the finals season:
- Organize and prioritize: Organize your study materials and study area. Prioritize what you need to study and schedule study time.
- Take a break. Do something joyful: Schedule some break time to talk with friends or take a walk. Remember to eat; your brain needs food to function at its peak.
- Test with integrity: Use authorized technology only and no cheat sheets. Follow your professor’s exam instructions; they vary class-to-class.
- Ask for help: Reach out to your professor if you need help in class. Contact the Care Team with concerns for yourself or a friend through email utmcareteam@utm.edu or submit a hawk alert at care.utm.edu.
- Do your best: It’s your time to shine, Skyhawk!
