The pandemic has shined a light on mental health issues as a record number of individuals are reporting symptoms of anxiety and depression.
According to Mental Health America, Kentucky is ranked 23rd in the nation for mental health cases among children and adults.
The CDC reported that more than 50% of individuals will be diagnosed with a mental illness at some point in their life.
The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development reported that countries across the world, including the United States, saw an increase in mental health cases.
The OECD found that an estimated 30.8% of Americans are suffering from anxiety, an increase from 8.2% in 2019. The report added that 23.5% of Americans are now suffering from depression, up from 6.6% in 2019.
The COVID-19 pandemic also caused a dramatic increase in mental illness among college students.
Inside Higher Ed reported that an estimated 85% of college students are experiencing higher levels of stress and anxiety due to the pandemic.
“Another poll from the Beginning College Survey of Student Engagement found that 53 percent of first-year students reported a substantial increase in mental and emotional exhaustion,” according to Inside Higher Ed. “Because of the increased need for services, institutions are beefing up their mental health resources for the fall semester.”
Murray State University is one of many public institutions to notice the toll COVID-19 has had on students.
Dr. Angie Trzepacz, Director of University Counseling Center, wants students to know the Counseling Center is here to help when issues arise.
Trzepacz said that while the pandemic led to a more open conversation about mental health issues, it is still seen as a taboo subject for some individuals.
“It is very different from one student to the next,” Trzepacz said.
“They don’t pay attention to [counseling] until they need it and until then [students] sort of ignore it so when they actually need it they haven’t really noticed it exists before then,” Trzepacz said.
Trzepacz said they started workshops to teach students coping skills when dealing with stress, anxiety and depression. These workshops can be utilized by any student and began to ensure students needing help could receive guidance before being assigned a counselor.
“Right now we have a waiting list for individual clients and we wanted to be able to provide some services to them while they waited to be assigned to an individual counselor,” Trzepacz said.
Trzepacz said that students have not participated in the workshops yet, but she blames the pandemic for the lack of student involvement.
“I’ve [heard] some people blame the pandemic that people got used to being in their own little bubble and not being active and participating in things and they kind of forgotten how to do that,” Trzepacz said.
These workshops are held Monday-Wednesday from 4:00-5:00 p.m in C104 Oakley Applied Science.
Tao Connect is an online service that the Counseling Center began using this semester.
According to their website, Tao Connect provides individuals with resources on mental health.
“TAO includes over 150 brief, effective, educational sessions covering over 50 common topics and skills related to mental health, wellness and substance use issues,” according to TAO. “TAO includes interactive sessions, mindfulness exercises and practice tools all aimed at helping you achieve your goals.”
Students interested in learning more about TAO and their resources should visit https://us.taoconnect.org/register
The Counseling Center recently opened the zen den at the beginning of the semester to give students a safe space to relax and unwind in between classes.
Trzepacz said the space has not been utilized as much this semester because the space serves as a space for students to zoom with counselors.
“Students can reserve for 30 minutes to just hang out and relax,” Trzepacz said. “We have quiet music and a water feature, just relaxing activites.”
Trzepacz said the space also has a light box for students suffering from seasonal depression.
The zen dens can be reserved through the Counseling Center, but students are limited to one visit per day.
To listen to my full interview with Dr. Angie Trzepacz on all of the resources the Counseling Center offers, listen to the clip above.
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