As you may or may not know, yesterday was Bell Let’s Talk Day – but the conversation does not end there. Bell Let’s Talk Day is focused on eliminating stigma, normalizing discussion, and starting conversations about mental health and well-being. At St. Jerome’s, we focus on educating the whole student and supporting every aspect of personal growth. Beyond our commitment to academic support, spiritual guidance and student activities, the mental wellness of our students is a top priority. As an SJU student, you’re actually just like Hannah Montana – you get the best of both worlds. You’ll not only have access to all of the resources offered at the University of Waterloo, but you’ll also benefit from the tight-knit support network at St. Jerome’s.

One of the best things about the small community at St. Jerome’s is the strong sense of peer support. Student leaders aren’t therapists, but we’re always here to listen and help in any way we can. As upper year students, we’ve been in your shoes and we’re happy to share what we’ve learned. Student leaders are very familiar with the resources available on campus and can refer you when you don’t know where to go for support.

 

The main contact for all things mental health and wellness here is Lindsay, the Wellness Coordinator. She is a licensed social worker with a focus on inclusion and holistic well-being, and she’s literally the nicest person ever. In her role, Lindsay works to ensure that the culture of St. Jerome’s is inclusive and that community members are knowledgeable about mental wellness. She works to involve SJU in campus-wide programming like Bell Let’s Talk Day, Thrive Week and Consent Week, and she works directly with students to offer individual counselling and provide referrals to Counselling Services, AccessAbility Services, and off-campus resources.

 

 

In addition to Lindsay, the rest of the Student Affairs team at St. Jerome’s is equally committed to student wellness. Have concerns about academics? Your Academic Advisor Joe is always there to chat. Need spiritual guidance? The Campus Ministry Team, Martha and Erika, are two of the most caring people you’ll ever meet.

When you hear “Counselling Services,” you might think “lying on a couch while a man in tweed scrutinizes my responses to an inkblot test”. It’s true, your counsellor might have a thing for tweed, but that’s probably where the similarities will end. Beyond individual counselling, CS offers a ton of different services tailored to students with unique needs. At Counselling Services you’ll find Group Therapy sessions for students working on regulating emotions, overcoming anxiety and dealing with depression, Coping Skills Seminars focused on resilience and changing behaviour, and Workshops on mindfulness, body positivity and compassion. Counselling Services also offers a variety of mental health first aid and suicide intervention training programs designed to educate our staff and students and create knowledgeable support networks all over campus.

 

 

The MATES are student volunteers who have received training and mentorship from the clinical psychologists at Counselling Services. They support students with stress and anxiety, academic issues, social and relationship difficulties, mental health challenges, transitional challenges, and challenges adapting to culture.

 

 

The mental health office at Health Services offers psychiatric services with the referral of a physician. Health Services also employs a mental health nurse to assist with transition of care and phone safety checks.

 

AccessAbility Services offers a number of accommodations for students with disabilities. If you’re looking for academic accommodations, assistive technology, workshops focused on learning strategies, or note-taking support, AccessAbility Services might be a good fit for you!

At SJU we work hard to ensure that supporting mental wellness is woven throughout the student experience, but the unfortunate truth remains that often the students who would most benefit from mental health resources are not accessing them. Eliminating stigma, normalizing discussion and starting conversations are all fantastic places to start, but the most important thing students can do is make sure they’re directly supporting their own mental health and the mental health of those around them. Reflect on your experiences, engage in self-care, and access resources if necessary. If you’re not sure exactly how to do that, don’t worry! Next time we’ll be tackling mental health and the transition to university, (in other words: how to take care of yourself like a grown-up).

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