By Brittany Baumgarten
mtvU and the Jed Foundation launched a national campaign, called HalfofUs, to help prevent student suicides and fight mental health stigmas on college campuses nationwide. mtvU is a 24 hour channel that broadcasts to 750 college campuses nationwide. It is the largest television network just for students.
The Jed Foundation is a national non-profit organization founded by Phil and Donna Satow after the loss of their son Jed Satow, a college sophomore who committed suicide without anyone fully understanding that his life was in imminent danger. mtvU and the Jed Foundation have teamed up to help prevent future suicides.
According to mtvU, suicide is the number two killer of college students in the country. mtvU is dedicated to reaching students in every aspect of college life. The channel focuses on music videos from up and coming artists, news, student life and pro-social initiatives, in an effort to create suicide awareness on all levels.
There are three ways you can access mtvU, on-air, online and on campus. On air, mtvU uses public service announcements that profile students who are dealing with emotional disorders. The announcements air several times a day around regular programming.
mtvU’s online site connects students to campus-specific resources and events. The site includes a self-evaluator screening tool, an anonymous screener that detects emotional disorders and customizes feedback to the student’s specific school.
On campus, mtvU partners with student groups to reach out directly to students by providing information on mental health. Mental health stigmas prevent students who need help from asking for it. In a survey conducted by mtvU, 77 percent of those surveyed would not want their friends to know if they were seeking help for emotional issues.
The Counseling Center at the University of Louisville is dedicated to help those in need and offers a variety of programs to diagnose and treat depression and other mental health problems that may lead to suicidal thoughts. Their first level of intervention is a screening of depression on the Counseling Centers’ Web site.
Intervention by college counseling centers is the key to preventing suicides. Vince Brown, director of the Counseling Center said, “It is always on our minds and is something that is never far from us. Prevention is 24/7.”
Stephanie Smith, a freshman nursing major, said, “It starts out you get stressed out about school, then you get frustrated and isolate yourself without meaning to. After a while you get very lonely and depressed and think that no one cares about you and there is no point in living.”
The Counseling Center also offers suicidal prevention presentations on campus for Resident Assistants, Resident Directors and in the dorm training.
Starting early with intervention is key, Brown said. “We do outreach presentations where we talk about various mental health problems to plant a seed early so those in trouble know who to get help from should they need it.”
Stress may also play a role. “Suicidal thoughts generally occur because a person reaches their personal maximum level of frustration,” said Sheena Binford a social worker at U of L.
In a survey conducted by mtvU, 46 percent of females agreed or strongly agreed that college is more stressful than they had expected. Polly Hamilton, a sophomore nursing major said, “Depression can be caused by a number of things, school necessarily isn’t a catalyst. However, school can be a great means for someone to seek help in dealing with depression.”
According to a survey from the College Health Association in 2005, one in five students reported experiencing depression in the past year.
Warning signs are key to the prevention of suicide, Brown said. “People shouldn’t minimize problems, or expect they might go away. Take care of your friends by making sure they get help.”
mtvU and college campuses are working together to educate college students on stress, mental health issues and the prevention of suicides to create a happier, healthier world.
