CONTENT WARNING: Discussion of suicide and mental health concerns. If you have are experiencing thoughts of suicide or self harm, dial 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. View options for mental health services on campus through University Health Services.
May 1 marks the first day of National Mental Health Awareness Month. At the beginning of the year, Gov. Tony Evers declared 2023 ‘the Year of Mental Health’, and dedicated $500 million of his proposed state budget to mental health initiatives for the people of Wisconsin.
“With our state’s historic surplus, we have a historic opportunity and responsibility to make critical investments to address the pressing challenges facing our state,” Gov. Evers said in a statement. “These past few years have been especially difficult for our kids, families, and folks across Wisconsin, and the mental and behavioral health challenges facing our state today will have disastrous consequences for generations.”
Evers plans to fund the expansion of mental and behavioral health services around the state. $270 million of the budget will go toward an initiative named “Get Kids Ahead,” a program that will ensure that all Wisconsin kids have access to mental health services in school. The budget also allocates money for suicide and self-harm prevention programs, prevention training and the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline call center.
Both Wisconsin and the U.S. are facing a mental health crisis, according to Advisory Board. In February The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a report that said across the US, more than 40 percent of high school students felt so sad or hopeless that it was affecting their routine activities, and that one in 10 students has attempted suicide.
“If we want to improve outcomes and ensure our kids are prepared for success, then we have to make sure our kids can bring their full and best selves to the classroom,” Evers said in the statement.
The Joint Finance Committee will begin deliberations on Evers’ proposed budget tomorrow, May 2.
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Other organizations, like the Center for Healthy Minds at UW-Madison, offer students mental health services and education year-round.
“Our mission is to cultivate well-being and relieve suffering through a scientific understanding of the mind,” Communications Director Heather Harris said in an email statement to The Badger Herald. “This vision and mission expand beyond a month or a year – but Mental Health Awareness Month during ‘The Year of Mental Health,’ is a perfect time to reflect on well-being.”
The center offers opportunities for students to talk with their peers and learn more about scientifically-backed methods of fostering mental health.
CHM also created a UW course called ‘The Art & Science of Human Flourishing’ in response to the college campus mental health crisis across the nation, that will be offered to incoming freshmen in Fall 2023, Harris said.
Resources regarding suicide prevention and mental health:
- 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: 988 https://988lifeline.org/help-yourself/loss-survivors/
- Crisis Text line: Text HOME to 741741 https://www.crisistextline.org/
- Survivors of Suicide (SOS) support group: https://www.uhs.wisc.edu/prevention/suicide-prevention/
- Trevor Lifeline: https://www.crisistextline.org/ crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQ) young people under 25
- 24/7 crisis support 608-265-5600 (option 9)
