MENTAL health: two simple words, but it is something often hard to start a conversation on. Although there has been progress by Generation Z to raise awareness and start a discussion on it, many are still struggling to seek help due to the stigma.

Being part of a school community helps develop a student’s personality, especially since it cultivates students to be empathetic and kind to one another. In an interview with THE BEDAN HERALD, Ma. Therese Yap (II-BSBA-FM), who is clinically diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), shared her experiences as a student with a mental health condition. 

The Bold Choice

ADHD is a neurodevelopmental disorder in which people diagnosed with this may find it hard to pay attention, control impulsive behaviors or act without thinking about the outcomes, and be excessively active. 

Yap shared that she was just recently diagnosed with the condition because she struggled ever since she was a child and made the bold choice to reach out for help. As a student with ADHD, her mind would often be “elsewhere, or it forms a brain cloud” during lectures. When it came to her schoolwork, she’d be “very disorganized,” thus forgetting the deadlines of her homework and dates of tests. However, as she came to terms with her condition, Yap learned from experimenting with different types of coping mechanisms and determined which worked best for her—journaling. 

Journaling has helped her keep track of her schoolwork and meet her deadlines just in time. Yap claimed that it motivated her to accomplish her school activities earlier rather than forgetting them. She said that having ADHD is also associated with her anxiety, and, somehow, this helped her remember things and reminded her to always check her to-do lists. Thus, through journaling, she could balance being a student and a member of the school organizations. 

There’s always a rainbow after the rain

“Let it feel it,” said Yap as she shared that she lets herself feel her emotions when dealing with dark days. Some “me time” activities like watching a film, resting, and skincare were recommended by her as she learned that bottling up her emotions was no good. Additionally, she expresses her emotions so that no one will be hurt or deals with them by reaching out to her friends.  

As part of a school community, Yap wishes her fellow schoolmates  to start acknowledging and validating their feelings and struggles—to make the bold choice of reaching out for help if they suspect that they have mental health issues because then, growth for oneself will be achieved if we help ourselves.

Sharing is Healing

THE BEDAN HERALD interviewed Ms. Gilianne Peralta, the College of Art and Sciences (CAS) guidance counselor, about her professional perspective on people facing mental health issues. She said the pandemic may be one factor that contributed to the rise of mental health issues among the youth today because it limited their access to mental health care and healthy coping mechanisms. She shared that fighting the stigma is a “continuous effort” and that the school’s Counseling and Career Development Services advocates the value of mental health through its programs: celebrating guidance month,  peer organizations, counseling and interview, and having PEP classes. “Sharing is healing, so they say. You do not have to go through your struggles alone,” said Ms. Peralta. She encourages the Bedan community to visit their office for proper care and service. 

By identifying and acknowledging the problem, only you can come up with solutions. It takes immense courage to reach out for help; the least we can do is be kind, listen, and be there for one another.