I recently heard the founder of Active Minds, Allison Malmon speak. Her talk moved me to tears. She told the story of her brother and the tragedy that led Allison to start Active Minds.
I know we are not supposed to make mental health posts. However, this is not all that different from me attending a concert, or hearing a speaker on another topic and finding it worth sharing. And this is definitely worth sharing. Like many of my posts it may meet with polite silence. However, if even one person reading feels less alone because of it, it is worth it.
Silence often equals death for young people. So many people suffer in silence and do not seek help. So many that seek help find little or no services available or get the quick brush off or a cursory prescription for pills with little follow up. Many schools are cutting their mental health budgets even as the need and demand are soaring.
Active Minds is run by students on each campus. Those readers that want information can do a search and find their site quickly. I know there are a relatively high percentage of people here that are either students or connected to a college or university. Right now the groups work primarily to lift the stigma, raise funds, have events, and lift the veil of isolation.
I am active with another mental health group, Recovery Inc. based in Chicago. It is by this connection that I came to hear Ms. Malmon.
If you are a college student there may be an Active Minds group on your campus. If there is not, one can be started. All it takes is a few motivated students. Most of the students have stories similar to Allison’s or her brother’s.
Why do you keep paraphrasing emm with these questions without telling us where you are coming from? I can’t tell whether you are seeking to subtly imply reservations, or what you are trying to say.
Not that I have a stake in this topic, being past college.
What I hear you asking is, why I came to this particular set of posts.
Mostly I originally looked at it because I was wondering if it skirted the mental health questions rule. I think it’s a good thread. Like Cranberry, I too enjoy BillChin’s posts.
The psychologist Carl Rogers advocated a sort of therapy
where the therapist ‘mirrors’ what the client says,
as Walden was. That’s all the therapist does, in fact.
This led to a joke.
The patient comes in.
She says:
P: I’m feeling terrible.
T: You are saying that you feel very badly.
P: Yes, in fact I want to kill myself!
T: Your unpleasant feelings have become so forceful
that you are thinking of doing away with yourself.
P: Exactly!
And she jumps out the window.
The Rogerian therapist sits quietly for about ten seconds,
then says, with great sensitivity and compassion–
Umm, I’m new to this sort of thing, but I’d like to ask a question.
Here’s my question: At work, I walk through the psych clinic area quite often. They have a number of rooms used for support and therapy groups. Typically, these rooms have chairs all arranged in a circle, and there may be end-tables. Almost without fail, at all times, there will be a single box of Kleenex sitting smack dab in the middle of the circle on the floor.
Occasionally, a conference room gets used for a group. When they leave, they leave the chairs all pulled out into a circle and . . . yup . . . a box of Kleenex smack dab in the middle of it. On the floor.
Nobody ever steps on the Kleenex. There are never two boxes of Kleenex. The Kleenex is never on an end-table, never on a windowsill, and never on a chair.
Therapist: Vito, you’re still blocking. How do you feel about them shooting Santino fifty-six times?
Vito Corleone: Terrible. We had to go to the mattresses. Tessio sleeps with the fishes. Johnny is through in Hollywood. They blew up Michael’s wife and a lovely car. The Tattaglias, Barzinis, and Boyardees all have contracts out on me, the Feds are watching me, Kefauver is investigating me, and the ASPCA is after me over this horse thing.
The Kleenex is usually complimentary from the companies. In therapists offices you’ll usually see Kleenex, ink pens, stationery, staplers, paper clips, hand sanitizer, and all sorts of things like that. It’s all provided free just so the companies can get their advertising out. Often, in my experience, the Kleenex box will say “Zoloft” or “Paxil” or somesuch on it as well–it’s all advertising.
The Kleenex just sits there until it runs out and then they go to the supply closet and get more. I don’t know why there aren’t 2 boxes or 4 boxes or whatever, I suppose 1 box is simply more aesthetic. Dale, do you know?
