{"id":17349,"date":"2020-05-07T12:33:26","date_gmt":"2020-05-07T12:33:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.uwb.edu\/?p=17349"},"modified":"2023-06-08T18:26:42","modified_gmt":"2023-06-08T18:26:42","slug":"mental-health-awareness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uwb.edu\/news\/2020\/05\/07\/mental-health-awareness","title":{"rendered":"Raising awareness around mental health"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By N.L. Sweeney
\nIn recognition of national Mental Health Awareness Month<\/a> \u2014 and to bring attention to the mental health impact the coronavirus pandemic is having on people at UW Bothell <\/a>and around the world \u2014 Hoa Appel is working with colleagues at UW Bothell to organize a number of virtual activities on May 18, Behavioral Health Awareness Day<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Mental<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Appel, a lecturer in UW Bothell\u2019s School of Nursing & Health Studies<\/a>, is supported in this work by a Learning Community,<\/a> a university-funded group of faculty and staff who come together to co-learn. In this case, the subject is behavioral health awareness, which she defines as mental health and substance use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Appel, this national month of awareness couldn\u2019t have come at a better time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMental health awareness is more important now than ever,\u201d said Appel, citing the remote environment students, faculty and staff are working in due to COVID-19. \u201cBehavioral Health Awareness Day is about starting the conversation about mental health so that we can begin to address it as a community.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bringing people together<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Members of the behavioral health learning community, left to right, (L-R) Bryan White, Rosemary Simmons, Maureen West, Hoa Appel, Kosuke Niitsu<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

To attract and engage a broad spectrum of people, the events planned for Behavioral Health Awareness Day will incorporate perspectives from across multiple academic and professional disciplines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The organizing team reflects this interdisciplinary approach. In addition to Appel, it includes Annie Bruck, a senior lecturer in the School of Nursing & Health Studies; Cheryl Gordon, a lecturer in the School of Education Studies; Kosuke Niitsu, assistant professor in the School of Nursing & Health Studies; Rosemary Simmons, the director of the Counseling Center at UW Bothell; Ana Thompson, the learning and access designer in the Office of Digital Learning & Innovation; and Bryan White, a senior lecturer in the School of STEM.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Importantly, the main goal of this day\u2019s events is not to solve mental health issues but rather to bring greater awareness to them. \u201cMental health is important to everyone. All of us feel the effects of the pandemic on our mental health,\u201d said Appel. \u201cWith the pandemic, there has been more social isolation which leads to an increase in substance use, mental health concerns and suicide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Niitsu, sometimes just knowing you\u2019re not alone in having difficulties dealing with the pandemic is the most important realization. \u201cBy acknowledging that responding to our situation with anxiety, stress and depression is normal,\u201d said Niitsu, \u201cwe hope to help reduce that stress.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Activities will feature, among other events, a remote mindfulness exercise led by Niitsu, a presentation on the resources on campus by Thompson, a presentation on anxiety and depression by nursing students and a panel where students will share their experiences with mental illness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Connecting in the classroom<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Ko
Ko Niitsu<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Drawing focus to mental health is not limited to events on May 18. As Appel said, \u201cthe conversation about mental health has already started for our faculty and staff members.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Niitsu, this has meant allocating time in his Advanced Pathophysiology, Pharmacology and Health Assessment class for people to connect. \u201cAt the beginning of our course, I had the students take some time to talk and get to know each other,\u201d said Niitsu. \u201cThis kind of social connectedness is so important right now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this same course, Niitsu used the opportunity of talking about the lungs and heart to do a mindful breathing exercise with his students. \u201cIt\u2019s easy to forget how important the little things are,\u201d said Niitsu. \u201cExercises like meditation and mindful breathing are really helpful when you\u2019re feeling anxious and stressed like many students are right now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Appel, too, has emphasized connectedness in her course, Principles of Health Research, asking her students to form into small groups to talk about the coping mechanisms they\u2019re using to support themselves while in this quarter\u2019s remote learning environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe conversation around mental health shouldn\u2019t be just for events like Behavioral Health Awareness Day,\u201d said Appel. \u201cThey should take place in the classroom, too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Starting the conversation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In addition to work in the classroom and events set for Behavioral Health Awareness Day, Appel, Niitsu and Bruck also came together to compose a list of steps people can take to improve their mental health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cStudents and others should understand that many more people have mental illness than they know,\u201d said Appel. \u201cBy providing awareness and education about behavioral health \u2014 including mental health and substance use\u2014 we hope to raise awareness of a number of things concerning mental illness, such as that many mental illnesses are treatable.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe COVID-19 crisis has been a horrible experience for most of us,\u201d she said, \u201cbut one positive outcome is that mental health is now at the forefront.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A community of University of Washington Bothell faculty have been working to raise awareness of mental health issues and the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on behavioral health.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_is_archived":false,"_archived_contact_email":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[202,249,229,252],"tags":[],"school":[420],"class_list":["post-17349","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-campus-news","category-coronavirus","category-faculty","category-population-health","school-school-of-nhs"],"acf":{"related_links":{"toggle_visibility":false,"link_1":null,"link_2":null,"link_3":null,"link_4":null,"link_5":null},"highlight_box":{"toggle_visibility":false,"title":"","content":"","button":null,"button_style":"angled-purple-button","button_screen_reader_text":""},"contact_type_1":{"toggle_visibility":true,"contact_title":"","email":"","phone":"","box":"","address_line_1":"","address_line_2":"","location":""},"contact_type_2":{"toggle_visibility":false,"contact_title":"","email":"","phone":"","box":"","address_line_1":"","address_line_2":"","location":""},"social_media":{"toggle_visibility":false,"facebook_url":"","instagram_url":"","linkedin_url":"","twitter_url":"","youtube_url":""},"blog_archive_sidebar_visibility":false},"yoast_head":"\nRaising awareness around mental health - 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