For my capstone, I wanted to do something for student mental health. I feel very passionate about mental health amongst students because I struggle with my own mental health and some mental illnesses. I was lucky to be able to get help, but I knew that not every kid had the same access to the help that I received. This upset me, but also led me to envision a resource in the form of a website for struggling kids who felt that they had nowhere else to turn to. I wanted to be able to provide information and advice about the things these kids were facing and point them to where they can get further help with their problems. To do this I completed extensive research on mental health and some of the most common mental illnesses that kids face. I also gathered some outside resources that people can use to find further help. My final product is a polished website that I am extremely proud of. While it is no substitute for professional assistance, I feel that my website could provide some basic information and comfort to any kids (or parents, guardians, and teachers) that need help. Throughout the process I learned a lot more about how mental illnesses can affect people. I also think I learned how to better treat myself and others who are struggling with poor mental health or a mental illness. Additionally, I improved my time management as this project spanned several months.

References

American Psychiatric Association. (n.d.). Retrieved April 29, 2019, from https://www.psychiatry.org/

This source is the official website of the American Psychiatric Association. It is a great resource to find information about various types of mental illnesses and mental health in general. Specifically, I used this source when writing the about mental health section of my website to distinguish the difference between mental health and mental illnesses. I also used the source to gather some more information on depression. As the source comes from the American Psychiatric Association, the largest psychiatric organization in the world, it is safe to say that it seems credible.

Anxiety and Depression Association of America. (n.d.). Retrieved April 29, 2019, from https://adaa.org/

This source is the official website of the Anxiety and Depression Association of America. It provides people information about depression and anxiety, and it also directs them to where they can get help. I used this resource when I was working on the anxiety section of my website. It was able to give me information about the symptoms of anxiety as well as how it can be treated. As the source comes from the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, a nonprofit organization, it seems pretty credible.p

Anxiety vs. Anxiety Disorders. (n.d.). Retrieved April 29, 2019, from http://www.ulifeline.org/articles/439-anxiety-vs-anxiety-disorders

This source is an article from a website about college mental health. The article talks about the differences between normal feelings of anxiety and the feelings a person has from an anxiety disorder. I used this source when working on the anxiety section of my website to explain the key differences between anxiety as an emotion and anxiety as a mental illness. The website ends in .org and contains no ads, so it seems safe to say that it is credible.

Borges, A. (2016, July 02). 10 Tips For Talking To Your Parents About Your Mental Health. Retrieved April 29, 2019, from https://www.buzzfeed.com/annaborges/how-do-i-tell-my-parents-i-need-mental-health-help

This article uses advice from professionals in the field of psychology to answer questions kids may have about informing their parents of their mental health. An issue that is common for youth struggling with mental illness or their mental health is that their parents are unresponsive to their claims. This website addresses that issue by giving advice on preparing the conversation, holding the conversation, and what to do afterwards. In addition, I liked how this source presented the information in a way that was easily digestible to younger readers. As I want my website to do the same, this will serve as a good model for how to relay the information I gather to my target audience.

Coping Mechanisms. (2018, September 26). Retrieved April 29, 2019, from https://www.goodtherapy.org/blog/psychpedia/coping-mechanisms

This article presents information about the coping mechanisms people use when struggling with mental illness and mental health. The source is a website that people use to to learn more about therapy and to potentially find therapists. It sights all of its references so the source seems credible. The article describes what a coping mechanism is and why people use them. In addition, it differentiates between negative and positive coping mechanisms, which is an imperative distinction to make. Knowing this information will allow me to help my target audience identify negative behaviors they use to cope and to guide people towards better alternatives.

Default - Stanford Children's Health. (n.d.). Retrieved April 29, 2019, from https://www.stanfordchildrens.org/en/topic/default?id=teen-suicide-90-P02584

This article presents information on teenage suicide. The website the article is on is ran by a hospital affiliated with Stanford University, so it seems like a credible source. The article goes in depth on multiple aspects of suicide. Besides defining suicidal behavior in teens, the article also talks about why teens commit suicide, warning signs of suicide, risk factors of suicide, treatments of suicide, and suicide prevention. Particularly, I appreciated the different sections dedicated to parents and teens for helping teens at risk. This information will help me to address suicide, which is an issue prominent amongst teens struggling with their mental well being.

Interested in becoming a mental-health friendly classroom? (n.d.). Retrieved April 29, 2019, from https://classroommentalhealth.org/

This website presents information to help teachers make their classrooms more mental health friendly. The program comes from the University of Michigan Depression Center, so it seems like a credible source. The website gives information for building a classroomate climate that focuses on wellness, communication, stress reduction, and the removal of stigma. In addition, the website offers ways for teachers to identify a struggling student and to get them help. It even has a section dedicated to communicating with parents and families of the affected child. The information gathered from this website will help me later when constructing the part of my website dedicated to teachers helping and understanding students in need.

Lyness, D. (Ed.). (2014, March). Anxiety Disorders (for Teens). Retrieved April 29, 2019, from https://kidshealth.org/en/teens/anxiety.html

This source is a website that gives a bunch of information on anxiety disorders. I used it when working on the anxiety section of my website. The source talks about normal anxiety, what anxiety disorders are, how anxiety disorders affect people, why people have anxiety, how anxiety can be treated, and things one can do to help themselves or others with anxiety. The website comes from a nonprofit organization, so it seems safe to say that it is credible.

Mental Health America. (1970, March 01). Retrieved April 29, 2019, from http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/

This website is the homepage for Mental Health America, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping those in need with their mental health and to promoting the overall mental health of all Americans. As the source comes from a nationwide nonprofit organization, it seems safe to say that the source is credible. The website offers various programs and advice on ways to help yourself or to get others help. In addition, the website answers frequently asked mental health questions along with offering multiple articles dedicated to specific mental illnesses. Besides gathering useful information for my own website pertaining to anxiety and ADHD, I will use this source as a model influencing the design of my final product (though I will make mine more specific to adolescents).

Mental Illness vs. Mental Health: The Difference and Why it Matters in the Workplace. (n.d.). Retrieved April 29, 2019, from https://capitaleap.org/blog/2016/08/12/mental-illness-vs-mental-health-the-difference-and-why-it-matters-in-the-workplace/

This source is a website that explains the difference between mental health and mental illnesses. I think this source does a great job of explaining the differences between the two, and I wanted to include that distinction in the about mental health section of my website. The source defines what mental health and mental illnesses are and even explains how they overlap. Plus, it stresses the importance of mental health just as much as physical health. The website comes from an official counseling program, so it seems safe to say that it is credible.

Nichols, M. P. (2013). Family therapy: Concepts and methods. Boston, MA: Pearson.

This source is a textbook used to study Family Therapy. As it is a professional and college level textbook, it seems safe to say that the source is credible. Particularly from this text I plan on using chapters 3 and 10 to gather information. This text presents unique information on psychology in relation to things like gender, family dynamics, family violence, multiculturalism, race, poverty/social class, and LGBTQ+ rights. Knowing the different ways those aspects affect mental health will be key to helping my target audience. In addition, I wanted to use this source in order to ensure that I was gathering information from a diverse set of resources.

Rooney, M. (n.d.). ADHD in Teenagers. Retrieved April 29, 2019, from https://childmind.org/article/adhd-in-teenagers/

This source is a website that explains the difference between mental health and mental illnesses. I think this source does a great job of explaining the differences between the two, and I wanted to include that distinction in the about mental health section of my website. The source defines what mental health and mental illnesses are and even explains how they overlap. Plus, it stresses the importance of mental health just as much as physical health. The website comes from an official counseling program, so it seems safe to say that it is credible.

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). (2018, May 17). Retrieved April 29, 2019, from https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/depression/in-depth/ssris/art-20044825

This source is an article that explains SSRIs, a commonly prescribed group of antidepressants. I used this source when working on the depression section of my website. The article explains what SSRIs are, how they work, the different types of them, the side effects of them, and any safety concerns that usage of them entails. The website ends in .org and has no ads, so it seems safe to say that it is credible as a source.

Teen Depression. (n.d.). Retrieved April 29, 2019, from https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/teen-depression/index.shtml

This source is an article that explains teenage depression. I used it when working on the depression section of my website. The article gives a great general overview of how depression affects teenagers. I specifically liked that it included questions one could ask themselves to see if they are depressed in addition to giving advice on steps a person can take to help themselves or others. The website comes from the National Institute of Mental Health, so it seems safe to say that it is credible.

Understanding Self-Injury/ Self-Harm. (n.d.). Retrieved April 29, 2019, from http://teenmentalhealth.org/understanding-self-injury-self-harm/

This source is an article that explains self-harm amongst teenagers. I used it when working on the suicide and self-harm section of my website. The article does a good job of explaining what self-harm is and why people do it. I also really liked how it gave advice to both people who may be harming themselves and to the people who may know someone who is. The website ends in .org and has no ads, so it seems safe to say that it is credible.

What’s the difference between mental health and mental illness? (2015). Retrieved April 29, 2019, from http://www.heretohelp.bc.ca/ask-us/whats-the-difference-between-mental-health-and-mental-illness

This source is an article that explains the difference between mental health and mental illnesses while also debunking the misconceptions about them. I used it when working on the about mental health section of my website. Specifically, I liked how this source explained that people with mental illnesses can still have good mental health. The website comes from the BC Division of the Canadian Mental Health Association, so it seems safe to say that it is credible.

The goal of this essay was to explore the relationship between people with mental illnesses and their identities. I am proud of using my scene of memory to attempt to explain an issue that can be difficult to talk about. I think that one area I could work further on would be the overall flow of my paper.

Matthew Milligan

Mr. Block

English 3

9 March 2018

Identity is the accumulation of one’s characteristics. Each individual part of a person blends together to make up the larger self, so in order to establish an identity it is important for one to be aware of the aspects of themself. However, when a person has a mental illness, their own self can seem like a stranger. People with mental illnesses can struggle with forming an identity outside of their illness, but regardless of that they do have one. It is harder for this to be understood though because there is a tendency in society to place stigma upon those with mental illnesses.

Having a mental illness makes forming an identity confusing. Madeline Wikerson explains this in her article Mental Illness and Identity by saying, “For example, I don’t know if I’m naturally a borderline pessimist/realist or if that’s due to my depression. I don’t know if I’m naturally a worrier or if that’s just my anxiety. I don’t know if I care a lot about what people think or if I wouldn’t care at all if I were to be cured of my illnesses.” Having a mental illness changes the ways in which a person perceives themselves and others. People with mental illnesses have intrusive and irrational thoughts that overpower reason. These thoughts are hard to silence and wind up making it difficult for a person to comprehend who they are. For many people like Madeline it is hard to tell where the illness stops and where the person begins.

Even though mental illnesses make it harder for somebody to understand the characteristics of themselves, that does not mean that those characteristics do not exist. In the article When You Struggle to See Your Identity Apart From Your Mental Illness, Anna Lente writes, “I see my identity includes having mental illnesses, but I am much more than that. And I remind myself that I change. My identity changes over time. My experience of mental illnesses changes.” When a person has a mental illness, it cannot be denied that there is an affect on who they are. However, the effect does not determine all that they are. No one person is defined by a singular characteristic, and a person with a mental illness still continues to grow regardless of the impact that their illness has on them.

Besides the internal problems caused by having a mental illness, people with mental illnesses are also affected by the stigma placed upon them by society. Melissa Kirk explains this in her article Who Am I? Self-Identity and Mental Health by saying, “If you're ‘mentally ill’ (read: if you often struggle with emotional experiences that are uncomfortable and you choose to be honest about it), that is you, you are it, and everything else about you is suspect.” When a person has a mental illness they can be placed within a box where none of their other characteristics matter.  Despite having multiple thoughts and emotions, people will continue to see only the label they gave.

Mental illness is a complex issue that people look at in a simple way because they do not understand it or because it makes them uncomfortable.  Instead of looking at the problem as a whole and figuring it out, it is easier to give a person with a mental illness a label and choose to see only that label. This diminishes the person with the mental illness and keeps them from being seen as a whole. Many people with mental illnesses fear this judgement and try to keep their struggles hidden because of it, which only adds on to the issue.

While each person is impacted by their mental illnesses differently, I have experienced firsthand how having one can affect your identity daily. When you live with anxiety, it never fully leaves you. Even when I find myself relaxing or having fun, there is still a voice in my head casting doubt my way. Sometimes the voice is screaming and overriding my thoughts, while at other times it is a whisper that I can ignore if I try hard enough.  Everyday is a battle of ups and downs.

The times where I commute to school are usually when it’s at its worse. I hop off of  the train and find myself faced with the station platform, which seems to stretch outward into infinity. I know in reality that the walk from the platform to the trolley stairs is brief, but when I start to worry time slows down and warps itself. As I walk I listen to music, which is supposed to be a lifeline, but my heart is beating too fast and I am breathing heavily. My face flushes and it feels like the eyes of every commuter are on me and I have to keep reassuring myself that they are not.

My breath shortens as my mind begins to race like a flooding dam. All I can think about is how stupid I must look, or if my school bag zipper is open even though I have checked it three times already. My palms are sweaty and I am nervous for school because I got the answer wrong in class yesterday so now everyone knows I am dumb. I bite my lip as my thoughts pick up and the next thing I know I am reduced to a fidgeting zombie and I am imprisoned by my own thoughts. I feel my body go on autopilot as my mind is taken away from me.

That is what anxiety feels like. You no longer own your thoughts as they are taken away by an illogical voice that will not shut up. When I get like this, it is hard to understand my thoughts and emotions and it can be difficult to know who I am. When my anxiety gets the best of me I know that I just have to continue going through the motions until I can find myself again. I know that that self exists.

Works Cited

“Mental Illness And Identity.” The Odyssey Online, www.theodysseyonline.com/mental-illness-and-identity. Accessed 8 Mar. 2018.

“When You Struggle to See Your Identity Apart From Your Mental Illness.” The Mighty, themighty.com/. Accessed 8 Mar. 2018.

“Who Am I? Self-Identity and Mental Health.” Psychology Today, www.psychologytoday.com/blog/test-case/201012/who-am-i-self-identity-and-mental-health. Accessed 8 Mar. 2018.

When I was a little kid I could never sleep over any of my friends’ houses. Despite how independent I wanted to be, the thought of spending the night away from my home and my family made my stomach drop. While most kids were able to shed this fear once they entered elementary school, I still remained afraid. I always worried that something would happen back at home and I would not be there to help, or that something would happen to me and my family would be too far away.  

It wasn’t until much latter, nearing middle school, that I began being comfortable over someone else’s house. Flashing forward to my freshman year of highschool , I found myself being able to leave my family for days at a time while being accompanied by my friends. Still, I always knew that my family remained fairly close wherever I went. I never thought that my comfort would have to be tested much after that, but an impulse decision made towards the end of freshman year led to just that very thing.

It was a typical afternoon where I was laying on my couch, attempting to complete my homework. My laptop pinged and I look towards the screen to see an email in my inbox. The email was to remind students that it was the last chance to apply for a STEM based trip that would occur in San Francisco, on the other side of the country.

I perked up as I read the email, having always dreamed of putting myself out there but constantly being held back by my doubts. After much convincing from my mother, I decided to take the chance. Hastily, I wrote the required essays and just barely submitted them before the deadline.

If I am to be honest, I had not given the trip anymore thought from there. It just seemed too unrealistic for me to win, which is why I was surprised to later find that I had been selected to interview for a spot on the trip. That day I was met with wide smiles from my parents as they assured me that I would do well. Going to bed later in the night I found my body tense and my mind racing. Sure I was excited, but I was also terrified. Half of me wanted to win and go while the other half argued that it was better to stay at home.

The time soon came for me to be interviewed. Dressed in what my mother called nicer clothes,  which were khakis and a polo shirt, I nervously made my way into a crowded conference room. Three tables connected around the room and led to a singular chair, where I was to take my seat. A much larger group of adults, all with varying positions in relation to the trip, watched me with fascination from their seats around the tables. I felt like I was on trial as a rapid series of questions were thrown at me from too many people with not enough time to respond. Talking about myself and my ambitions, I found my voice shaky and my answers too simple and short. I was certain that I bombed it.

I was again surprised when I received a call some days later telling me that I had been chosen to go on the trip. Not being able to contain my smile, I made my way downstairs where I told the news to my family. After a while I was left alone to think and I found my mind unable to relax. Worry and doubt seemed to course through my veins. My brain kept telling me that on the other side of the country anything could happen and that everyone I knew would be too far to help. From the days leading up to the trip, I wrestled between feeling excitement and dread.

When the time came for me to leave my heart was racing. I stood outside at the designated drop off location where I looked nervously at the cloudy sky, clutching my luggage like a lifeline. I was anxious, having not knowing  anyone who was going on the trip with me. I was going to be alone.

“Will you be ok?” asked my older sister.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. Don’t worry.” I lied with a nervous smile.

The rest of the day seemed to go by in a flash. I was at the airport going through security, I was on a plane soaring through the sky, and then I was in California all by myself. San Francisco was beautiful, though a little overwhelming. After some sightseeing, I was glad to make my way back to my hotel room and into my bed. That night my heart ached as I called my parents and told them about my first day. It had seemed like I was never going to get better.

However, after each day of the trip, I found my worries getting smaller and smaller until eventually I had none at all. Though I missed my family, it was easy for me to get swept up in the excitement of a new city and new people, of new experiences and even newer freedom. I realized that while I was with my family, I never spoke for myself. I was always a piece of a larger whole. From being alone during that week, I discovered that I could choose how to represent myself and how I wanted to be. More importantly, I realized that sometimes it was ok to be alone and out of your comfort zone. When you did something by yourself, you may be surprised by what you have discovered.