College is stressful. It is full of deadlines, expectations, and peer pressure. There are late nights, early mornings, and a usually less-than-great diet. Many students are far away from home for the first time and immediately get thrust into the world of “adulting.”

Then, add mental-health concerns into the mix. For students living with mental illness, college can feel daunting, sometimes impossible.

So what is it actually like to be a college student living with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder? How about depression or social anxiety? An eating disorder?

Last year, the University of Iowa Student Government and Active Minds, a mental-health advocacy student organization on campus, set out to answer those questions by asking UI students to share their personal stories related to mental illness. For this video campaign, more than 20 brave Iowa students got in front of the camera to share their stories about mental health in an effort to destigmatize mental illness. The results were a powerful video series called “True@theU,” which aims to encourage dialogue about mental-health concerns by sharing stories, thoughts, and advice from UI community members.

In October, UISG and Active Minds celebrated this campaign and the individuals who made it possible with a “month of mental health.” The month included the launch of “True@theU” in addition to other mental-health advocacy efforts. Our work ranged from large, powerful events such as the Field of Memories on the Pentacrest to raise awareness about college suicide to smaller, more personal activities, such as volunteers handing out compliments and candy on the T. Anne Cleary Walkway.

This month also included more formal action including UISG proposing a new student mental-health fee to the state Board of Regents, which will keep our university on track to hiring eight new counselors for the University Counseling Service by 2018. This new fee will help us address issues such as students waiting weeks for counseling appointments and allow us to expand the footprint of the Counseling Service beyond the West Side of campus.

After all this work, we think our efforts are working. We have seen more people talking about mental illness on this campus recently than we have in the past. These discussions help students feel more comfortable asking for help, and they empower the entire community to be supportive when they do.

The statistics remind us why we need to remain committed to making progress. Approximately one in five American adults experience mental illness in a given year, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, and that isn’t even the most sobering statistic concerning mental health on college campuses. According to National Data on Campus Suicide and Depression, more young adults die from suicide than all other medical illnesses combined, and one in every 12 college students make plans to take their lives. These numbers are far too high to not have a serious conversation about mental health and its impacts on our community.

We encourage UI students to use campus and community resources for mental-health support. The Counseling Service offers free counseling for all UI students and can also help students find counselors in the Iowa City community, if the student prefers. The Women’s Resource and Action Center and the Rape Victim Advocacy Program also both offer free counseling services. Student Disability Services can help students arrange academic accommodations if their mental illness prevents them from participating regularly in academic activities.

Overall, if this month made just one person feel a little less alone, then it will have been worth it. Each UI student deserves a community that supports them through the good times and the bad. That is why you matter at UIowa, and your mental health does, too.

— Kelin Silber and Rachel Zuckerman