UC Promotes Mental Health Awareness

The College’s second annual Mental Health Week kicked off at yesterday’s Undergraduate Council meeting as Paul Barreira, the director of behavioral health and academic counseling at Harvard University Health Services, discussed the resources available to students and fielded questions.

“This isn’t for people who are mentally ill,” Barreira said. “This is for all of us and how we can grow as a caring and open community.”

Throughout the week, titled “Speak Out: Mental at Harvard,” a series of events will aim to provide a forum to address student issues and raise awareness about mental health resources, said Tamar Holoshitz ’10, Student Affairs Committee chair and one of the primary organizers of both last year’s and this year’s events.

The week is also focused on gathering suggestions from the student community for improvement of mental health resources and their accessibility, she said.

“The week has two objectives—one is to raise awareness and the second is to create a dialogue that allows people to really speak up about their concerns,” Holoshitz said.

The week is co-sponsored by a number of other student groups, including the Mental Health Awareness and Advocacy Group, the student mental health liaisons, Community Health Initiative, and Drug and Alcohol Peer Advisors.

“It affects every single student on this campus,” said Andrea R. Flores ’10, UC president. “The main issue with mental health is getting people comfortable with seeking out resources.”

Two years ago, the mental health-focused events took place throughout April, which was designated “Mental Health Awareness Month.” Last spring was the first year the events occurred within the span of a week.

Lianna E. Karp ’10, a student mental health liaison and co-chair of MHAAG, said that it is often difficult for students to tell others when they need help with a mental health issue.

“I’m not sure if [mental health at Harvard] is overlooked. The better word for it is that students sometimes just don’t feel comfortable with it,” Karp said. “Because it’s Harvard there’s a lot of pressure on everyone to be perfect.”

Barreira also discussed future initiatives geared towards freshmen, referencing plans to interface with Peer Advising Fellows.

“The data shows that freshman year is one of the hardest transitions during a student’s four years at Harvard,” he said.

­—Staff writer Eric P. Newcomer contributed to the reporting of this story.

—Staff writer Brittany M. Llewellyn can be reached at bllewell@fas.harvard.edu.