The Forum

Beyond slogans and study sessions, students face silent battles with stress, anxiety, and depression—making true awareness, support, and action more critical than ever.

The month of May can arrive on college and university campuses with deception, appearing primarily as warmer weather and more consistent sunshine. Students are gearing up for finals, end of semester projects and for some, there's graduation. The library becomes the headquarters for many students. Fueled by coffee and energy drinks, they work to meet deadlines.

The theme of Mental Health Awareness during the month of May can often be oversimplified to soft-pastel-colored decorations around campus and social media posts reminding students “it’s OK not to be OK,” and that they “don’t have to struggle in silence.”  While many on those same campuses experience mental health as far more than trendy slogans. For some students, this time can be crucial as they work to maintain academic success and sustain relationships, while also struggling to survive. 

The experience of college or university in our culture is represented by ideals of freedom and exploration, a time for defining oneself and building the foundations for future endeavors. Yet beneath the inspired and hopeful exterior, can also lie another all-too-common experience. College life for some students can be experienced in isolation, being overwhelmed and emotionally raw, resulting in mental and physical exhaustion. 

A host of student-relevant concerns which can include academic pressures, social expectations, financial strains and the struggle to master transition to independence can combine to create a sense of crisis that just months before might have been inconceivable. Further complicating the need for support, student fears and anxieties expressed to others during these times can often be minimized or dismissed as "normal stress" typical of this time of year, leaving students to manage real and serious challenges in isolation. 

Studies show that most students are aware of mental health as American culture in recent decades has shifted to bring terminology like depression, anxiety, emotional distress and burnout into the mainstream vocabulary of the public sphere. While students may be aware of some of the language used when discussing mental health, this awareness of terminology has too often failed to translate into concrete insight about seeking help for self or supporting others in seeking help. 

STLCC student and photographer Imani Watson states, "a lot of people don't take it as seriously as physical health - like going to a regular check-up, but mental health is just as important." Watson reports she's had her own personal challenges with mental health. Imani shares that over time she has come to value her struggles with mental health as equally as she values her triumphs. "Students go through a lot with school, life, money and everything happening in the world can feel overwhelming. It's important to find ways to cope, whether that's talking to someone, journaling, or even getting outside. Simple things like fresh air..." 

What about the student who stops attending classes regularly after several weeks into the semester. Many might easily assume that they were slacking off or needed more self-discipline. When it is likely that they could be experiencing episodes of depression, panic attacks, or a sense of despair so intense that facing people and daily activities might seem impossible.

A student may joke about their "monster anxiety" over an upcoming exam. Are they referencing occasional, mostly manageable episodes of nervousness that come and eventually pass, or are they referring to chronic incidents of anxiety that immobilize them and create ongoing breakdowns in their daily functioning? If they mention feeling "depressed" since they received a "C" grade on their midterm several weeks ago, are they talking about a temporary disappointment; a storm of intense emotions that have risen, but have continued to dissipate over time, or are they indicating a need to be linked to support for something more serious?   

Watson further shares, "when I was going through a hard time, I stopped doing the things I loved, like photography. That's when I realized something was off, so I pushed myself to do those things again, even when it was hard, and it helped me feel better. Sometimes doing what feels difficult is what helps you back to yourself."  

Much of the culture around mental health support can normalize struggling alone. Romanticizing melancholy feelings and angst can lead students to suffering in isolation. Inaccurate tropes pushed by popular culture onto those who may at times struggle with emotional regulation often results in students thinking that they must manage these situations by themselves.  

For students, mental health awareness begins with understanding that feeling mentally unwell is a very common human experience. This degree of consciousness around mental health is vital, so students learn to feel OK in seeking and receiving help. For college and university faculty and institutions, mental health awareness has to begin with creating and maintaining an environment rich with mental health resources and the normalization of healthy and effective responses to challenges with mental health. 

When students and faculty on college campuses have awareness around mental health, it allows for a broader perspective about how challenges with mental health might look. Awareness helps to develop a culture in which checking in with peers and being prepared to really listen and provide support becomes normalized.

As strength and power have been falsely portrayed as working through fatigue, bottling up emotions and maintaining progress no matter what, shifting culture on campuses entails nurturing students' skills for exhibiting true strength and power that allows them to openly acknowledge when they are in need, being able to freely ask for help, and increasing their abilities to assert themselves and maintain their own healthy boundaries. 

When finals begin approaching and students are looking towards bringing their semester to a close, pressures can intensify. Mental Health Awareness Month gives us a chance to reflect and take account. We can pause to consider our own individual health and safety, yet also think about how well our campus culture embraces the normalcy of experiencing mental health challenges.

Awareness means that students and faculty on college and university campuses understand that mental health is as important as physical health. It means that we pay attention, that we ask questions, and that we are more thoughtful and deliberate in how we listen and respond to our peers. Awareness means that we have established and continue to maintain the notion that mental health is integral to academic life and foundational to success in higher education.

A culture in which awareness is elevated around mental health does not do away with life stressors and hardships, but it provides additional options for confronting and resolving those challenges. Assignments, deadlines, and grades are very important aspects of student life during the month of May. But most important is the well-being of the student. Awareness is understanding on the community level that sometimes we may struggle to maintain that wellness, and that when we do, help is there for us all.    

Photos provided by Imani Watson are from a series she created recently and have reportedly helped with her process of expression during times when she was not feeling well. She advises, “Feel what you’re feeling. Don’t ignore it, let yourself experience it, but don’t stay in that place forever. Remind yourself that it’s okay to feel that way and that healing takes time. I’m still healing myself.”

See more of Watson’s work on her Instagram page at: prec.isephotos_

If you’re not sure whether counseling can help, make an appointment for an initial consultation to learn more. There’s no obligation to continue after the first appointment.

Email: counseling@stlcc.edu or call (314) 513-5151 to request an appointment with an STLCC counselor. In your email, please include your full name, student ID number, your my.stlcc.edu email address, a preferred phone number, and the main campus location you attend.

If you are experiencing a mental health emergency, please:

Call or text 988 – the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, or Chat at 988lifeline.org, or Visit or call Behavioral Health Response at (314) 819-8811, or Call your local police at 911; emergency services are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.