I
walk down to the
kitchen to find a
bowl
of
walnuts
sitting
on
the
counter.
“Your dad got them for
‘health and happiness,’” my
mom recounts to me.
“Health and happiness,”
I repeat to myself. It’s a
simple idea, but in practice it
seems like a long journey in
need of consistent upkeep.
Being “in control” of your
own happiness is a concept
many people try to live by,
but it is not representative
of the direction of society.
Sometimes, it seems, it
is better to block out the
noise.
The competitive nature of
the University of Michigan
only
acts
as
a
barrier
between students and their
own self-care. Beginning
with the motto “Leaders
and the Best,” students
try to achieve lofty goals,
sometimes at the cost of
their own mental wellness.
Time
and
time
again,
student testimonies of their
campus experiences show
high levels of stress, but it
seems that most professors
and University are slow to
catch up in making changes.
Not only is this a problem
because of the everyday
stressors
students
have
in
terms
of
academics,
teachers often fail to realize
that students are affected
by the various hate crimes
and public bias incidents
on campus. After starting
university, I quickly found
myself
questioning
how
much I belong on this
campus,
and
having
to
create my own spaces where
I could feel welcomed.
As of last year, Central
Student
Government
created a Mental Health
Task Force to determine
the target issues students
face. Although the task
force
is
working
on
changes,
accessibility
to
mental health services is
often difficult, with CAPS
waitlists stretching longer
and longer.
And yet, the question of
where the stress originates
from is one that often goes
overlooked. According to a
survey done by the Mental
Health Task Force, “74
percent feel uncomfortable
addressing
their
mental
health
concerns
with
faculty.”
This
may
be
because
most
issues
of
physical or mental health
are dealt with on a case
by case basis, between the
student and the professor.
Students are thus at the
mercy of their professors
for accommodations. And
although
the
Dean
of
Students Office can send a
letter informing professors
of a student’s situation,
professors are not obligated
to make accommodations.
I only discovered this
when I was put in the
situation
myself,
after
being
hospitalized
with
a virus at the end of my
junior year. When I emailed
my adviser, she asked if
I would be withdrawing
from the semester, as my
professors did not have
to accommodate me even
if I did my work from
home. Luckily, I was able
to finish the school year
from home, but I had to
make arrangements with
each of my professors in
hopes that they would make
accommodations.
This
situation
only
mirrors
that
of
the
working world. Mental and
physical health are often
put
on
the
backburner,
despite the benefits of a
healthy
workforce.
And
for someone about to enter
the workforce, the list of
skills that each potential
employee
should
have
seems only to get longer.
In the past, it seemed as
though people only needed
a
couple
of
specialized
skillsets;
however,
now
employers look for high
specialization
in
many
more areas. Hundreds of
articles seek to answer
what employers are really
looking for so that students
ask themselves: “Do I need
to learn to code?” or “Should
I learn a third language?”
Students at this university
are
often
much
more
qualified than they believe
themselves to be, and yet
not many take the time to
breathe before rushing full
speed ahead. Almost all my
friends have, at some point,
told me they want to switch
what they are doing or are
not sure whether something
will work out.
I see in their eyes the
same stress that I have gone
through many times — as if
I need to have everything in
my life decided today and
have not yet learned every
possibly skill any potential
employer could ever want
me to have.
Sometimes I just have to
remind myself to breathe,
and
grab
handful
of
walnuts.
2B
Managaing Statement Editor:
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Wednesday, October 11, 2017 // The Statement
Let’s talk about it: Health and happiness
BY RABAB JAFRI, COLUMNIST
statement
THE MICHIGAN DAILY | OCTOBER 11, 2017
ILLUSTRATION BY EMILY HARDIE