VIU students make space to talk about mental health

Sachdeva (pictured) says he has gotten serval different certifications in mental health support and suicide prevention, something he never thought he could do. Photo: Lauryn Mackenzie / CHLY 101.7fm

January 24th is Bell Let’s Talk Day, a day started by the telecommunications company Bell to bring awareness and support to those experiencing mental health problems.

For the day, Thrive was on campus at Vancouver Island University (VIU) to bring awareness to the day and give students options to find support for their mental health. 

Brie Mcnevin is a Student Wellness Promoter with Thrive and an education student at VIU. She said along with all the events Thrive does throughout the school year, Bell Let’s Talk Day is a great way to meet students and start conversations about mental health.

She said days like today are important to end the stigma around mental health.

“It's important because it's one of those things that not very many people like to talk about. It's kind of it's very personal and it's good to know we're not alone,” Mcnevin said.

She said that a lot of students could be feeling a lot of stress throughout the school year and sometimes just saying ‘your mental health matters’ isn't enough. 

“It's really easy for people to say ‘your mental health is important,’ but that's all they say. Then it's like, okay, go home and sit there and study and you don't have an outlet for it a lot of the time,” Mcnevin said. “It's important to talk to somebody  that nobody's gonna judge you because chances are, they've been there too.”

Kush Sachdeva is an international student studying international business and philosophy at VIU. He joined Thrive at the beginning of the school year as a wellness peer to learn more about supporting mental health.

He said where he is from, mental health is something that is not openly spoken about.

“I come from India and in India. Oftentimes, seeking a counsellor or a therapist is seen as something outrageous and something that brings shame,” Sachdeva said. “But I don't have those values or ideas about mental health and I wanted to make a change for people who come from different places where mental health is stigmatized.”

Sachdeva works at the Thrive wellness lounge in the VIU Library which is open Tuesday through Thursday. In the lounge, they offer calming activities, information on mental health resources and therapy dog visits. 

Throughout the year Thrive also hosts other events and trainings for courses such as SafeTALK and Assist which are on suicide prevention. He said these types of spaces and training are important for students as university can be an overwhelming time.

“These all are very important because as a student, there are many challenges a student has to face. Doesn't have to be domestic or international students, for instance, course load,” He said. “For especially for first-year students, when they come in, they are not familiar with the university itself, how the program works, what is the expectation of the professors, how to get in touch with people, and how to make new friends. And that is a gap. That is something that causes a disconnect from the university experience of the student.”

Sachdeva said with Thrive he was able to get serval different certifications in mental health support and suicide prevention, something he had always wanted to do but never could do before coming to Canada.  

“During Assist, my trainer was very helpful with many terminologies and words that are misused or not depicted in the best way possible, and that was game changing for me in a sense. I understood a whole new level of what mental health means,” He said.

Sachdeva said self-care is an essential tool for those experiencing mental health problems. For international students like Sachdeva who come from countries where mental health is not spoken about, he advises to start listening and learning until you feel comfortable enough to talk about it.

Those on Vancouver Island in need of mental health support can call the 24-hour Vancouver Island Crisis Line at 1-888-494-3888 or call or text the country-wide Canadian Suicide Crisis Helpline at 988.

Funding Note: This story was produced with funding support from the Local Journalism Initiative, administered by the Community Radio Fund of Canada.