William Mellen was peeling potatoes when he noticed his arms were covered entirely in giant black spiders. Thirty seconds later, they were gone.

Mellen, a sophomore anthropology major, experiences hallucinations like this periodically as a result of his bipolar disorder.

The first Wellness Week, sponsored by the Division of Student Affairs, will address mental illnesses like bipolar disorder, depression, anxiety and schizophrenia. The events kicked off Sunday with a hike to reduce stress. Throughout the week, there will be opportunities to participate in yoga and pet therapy.

Nearly 30 percent of college students reported feeling ‘so depressed that it was difficult to function’ at some time during the year, according to a 2009 study from the American College Health Association. The Send Silence Packing event will represent this issue, with more than 1,000 backpacks lining the Quad to represent the number of suicides committed by college students every year.

Syracuse University’s Counseling Center is available as a resource for students who feel overwhelmed by emotion or difficult circumstances in their lives. About 15 to 20 percent of SU students utilize the Counseling Center during a typical academic year, said Cory Wallack, its director for the past nine years.

About 1,500 students currently use the therapy services exclusively and many are enrolled in the Options program for alcohol- and drug-related issues. Wallack said the center has a staff of only 11 therapists to serve a student population of almost 20,000.

‘It’s really not feasible,’ he said.

Because of the lack of resources, the Counseling Center staff is forced to assess which students have the greatest clinical need for their services based on a preliminary telephone interview and whether the student has access to insurance.

‘It’s both negative and positive,’ said Helayne Kushner, a senior psychology major. ‘It’s free, but it’s really hard to get an appointment. I mean, you’ve got to plan these sessions weeks, months in advance.’

The health fee covers only a certain number of hourlong sessions before students are referred to off-campus psychological services. Wallack said only about 40 percent of students continue treatment. Though the most common diagnosis at the center is clinical depression, a minority of students seek someone to talk to because of a situational influences like breakups, rather than medical influences, Wallack said.

‘We’ve become a society that is afraid of sadness,’ he said.

David Benjamin, a junior mechanical engineering major enrolled in University College, doesn’t pay the health fee, and therefore, he cannot access the Counseling Center or the alternative services provided by the psychology graduate program.

Benjamin, who suffers from bipolar disorder and obsessive compulsive disorder, sees an off-campus therapist and is eligible for assistance from the Office of Disability Services. He also finds comfort in the campus chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

NAMI holds biweekly support group meetings and screenings of mental health-related films like ‘A Beautiful Mind.’ The group’s main goal is to act as a support system for mentally ill students, and their friends and families. Members of the group also discuss the shame attached to the label ‘mentally ill.’

‘If people are aware that there’s help out there, maybe some of the stigma will be eradicated,’ said Mellen, who is NAMI’s president-elect.

Active Minds is another mental illness education student organization at SU. President Lexy Davis said when she was tabling for the organization in the Schine Student Center, people tended to back away from her table after reading what the group was about.

She is afraid that too few people know how to deal with their own struggles, let alone address those of friends and family.

‘Even if you don’t know the right thing to say or how exactly to fix the situation, sometimes just simply sitting next to someone you love who is going through a hard time and letting them know you care and they are not alone makes the biggest difference in the world,’ she said.

Active Minds and NAMI’s executive boards frequently visit classes to educate students on the realities of mental illnesses so that people like Benjamin no longer feel victimized.

Wallack said there is a common attitude that marginalizes sufferers of mental illnesses. He said it can be remedied with more compassion and empathy.

‘If you had a broken leg, no one would tell you to just walk it off,’ he said. ‘There needs to be an understanding that emotions are as legitimate when there’s a lack of control.’

Benjamin feels like his disorders separate him from mainstream society.

When he was younger, his brother used to say, ‘Well, there’s David’s way of thinking and then there’s the rest of the world’s way of thinking.’

He does credit his disorder, however, for his ability to think more deeply than the average person, which helps him to expand his skills as a creative writer.

‘Everybody here thinks that your psychological disability is a disability,’ Benjamin said. ‘It’s not. It’s an extra additive to who you are.’

sfanelli@syr.edu 

Published on April 15, 2012 at 12:00 pm