Mental illness is complex, and while the world today is much more knowledgable on the matter than the world was in the 1950s, we are still not where we should be. A specific place where mental illness seems to linger is in schools, and especially in secondary schools. Teenage years are a prime time for certain mental illnesses to start developing, and having a mental illness in the first place is hard enough and feeling like you’re alone makes it ten times harder.

Most schools try to keep students informed or even try to show awareness to certain subjects, and I’m sure everyone remembers all of the students gathering in the auditorium for a guest speaker. I’ve sat through a fair share of them, whether it was on bullying, abusive relationships, or drugs. While all of those things are important to talk about, one thing that was never discussed was mental health. The guidance counselors always said, “My door is always open” but is saying that enough? Do students really know that they have a place to go when they aren’t feeling like themselves? Some teachers said similar phrases in hard times, and let their students know that they have someone to talk to. It’s sad and endearing, but is it enough?

There are obviously some things that a school district has no control over, and there are some things that happen without any way of someone knowing it would happen. We should all be asking though, “Are our school districts doing enough?” During the school year, the staff sees the students more than their own parents do. When a student commits suicide, everyone asks “Why?” or “Was there anything I could have done differently?” Friends and family wonder how they didn’t see it coming, and it’s nobody’s fault when a serious tragedy like that happens, but the truth is that there isn’t enough being done for the people who feel that way.

For starters, mental illness needs to stop being stigmatized. Everyone wants people to talk about it, but very few actually talk about it. Mental illness should be focused on in education. When the “puberty talk” happens, is it all that hard to say, “Hey, when your body changes, sometimes chemicals in your brain do too. You might start to feel a little like ‘not you’ anymore; here’s how we can help.” The more we talk about it and the more awareness we spread, the more help we can get for the people that need it.

I know that school faculty and staff are busy, and I know that some students do reach out to their mentors. In my personal experience though, I barely knew anyone that wanted to go to school faculty members to speak with them (even for serious issues). I can’t say whether it was because they just didn’t feel comfortable speaking with them specifically or if they just didn’t want to speak about it in general, but I do know that education needs to be more inclusive of mental illness. Administration of schools should be giving outlets to students on where they can go when they need help, or what they can do when they’re feeling or behaving in a certain way. They should also do more for the parents: an after school information session on signs of mental illnesses could be just as helpful for the parent as it is for the student. Part of the stigma is because there isn’t enough education on it; people just don’t understand it.

Awareness and information about mental health will not stop mental illness from occurring, but it may help resolve it or lessen it. It may save one life, or it may save 1,000 lives. The stigma on mental illness is something that has been an ongoing problem, and a place where it is very stigmatized is in schools. It is not enough to depend on parents to talk about these things with their children because some parents aren’t educated on these illnesses as well. It should be a concern of school administration, and it should be talked about more. There is no reason students shouldn’t know about the symptoms to look for or the ways to help. A student body should be looking out for their peers, and one way to create a more welcoming environment is by helping students get a better understanding of each other.

If you do feel alone, and want to seek help:

Suicide Hotline: 1-800-273-8255

Website: SuicidePreventionLifeline.org

SAMHSA Treatment Locator: 800-662-4357

National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA): 800-931-2237

Website: nationaleatingdisorders.org

The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention: 1-888-333-2377

Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA): 240-485-1001

Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA): 1-800-826-3632

International OCD Foundation: 617-973-5801