As the new school year begins, colleges and universities across Kentucky are continuing a shift in focus towards the mental health of their students.
Schools like Eastern Kentucky University are looking to support students through advocacy and intervention in the face of stress during a period of change for young adults.
Lara Vance is the Dean of Students at EKU. She said the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic worsened the issue for students.
“Our counseling centers’ numbers indicate that that was happening as their number of clients and appointments was going up prior to the pandemic,” Vance said. “I do also think, though, that we're talking about it more.”
It’s also harder for students to find time to take care of themselves. Vance suggests reaching out to counselors or campus nurse practitioners and focusing on healthy diet and sleep habits to help with the mental strain.
“We put pressure on students to get out of college in a certain amount of time to get their degree so that they can become contributing members in our society,” Vance said. “And that's great. But that road is different for everyone.”
You can hear more from Vance on this week’s edition of Eastern Standard, which focuses on the mental health of students in the Commonwealth.
