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A dream- a lifegoal
Former Member
MiniposterPosts: 91 Budding Regular
in General Chat
So for a while i've had a dream, a goal, the ONE thing i want to do in my life above all other things:
Help provide proper mental health education (especially in high schools).
Now some context; In high school I was only taught about one singular mental disorder- depression. And badly at that. And sure, it's a start but that was it, the only thing we were taught about mental health at all.
And y'know, i have ocd, and it took me years to be able to recognise it because i hadn't a darn clue what it was until i was 14...and i've had it even before that age. I'm not even sure if the PSHE/life/citizenship curriculum enforces even learning about depression...
Depression is important to learn about, but so is bipolar, social anxiety disorder, eating disorders, trauma stemming from abuse (e.g ptsd, anxiety disorders, depression etc), drug addictions (& addictions in general). I think ocd and generalised anxiety disorder are pretty common too. And then there's ADD + ADHD and autism. Borderline personality disorder too. That's not even a small chunk of the list but I believe that composes the most common disorders of all kinds? (feel free to disagree, i'd love to hear any feedback on what SHOULD be taught!)
What i want to do is find a way i can teach people about these disorders, how to recognise the most common/worst of them (i'm thinking eating disorders, depression, social and generalised anxiety, and what the difference between depression/bipolar is. again feel free to disagree on which ones are the most important!) - And where to seek support, including support for both those suffering disorders and the family/friends of sufferers, and especially to victims of abuse too (that's all even rarer to be taught...)
Frankly I had an awful time of coming to terms with my own issues, and i still haven't told my family, and I was 16 before i learnt where most support agencies were (including online agencies like this one) and the fact i'm literally 18 before i sought any help for it. If I can, I want to offer education early - to high school students - to stop them suffering like I did, like many of yall did too.
But you know, i haven't a clue where to start on this...So my question is: Where do i start? Where do i start going about my goal?
I already teach in high schools on a voluntary basis, i already know how that goes but even if I did have a plan i'd still need an organisation to approach shcools with (because they aren't going to accept the dreams of a teenager as a valid source of education xD) & get qualifications with that would enable me to teach it. That is, if directly teaching even IS the best way to go about it (again, any/all suggestions & feedback is appreciated!!).
Help provide proper mental health education (especially in high schools).
Now some context; In high school I was only taught about one singular mental disorder- depression. And badly at that. And sure, it's a start but that was it, the only thing we were taught about mental health at all.
And y'know, i have ocd, and it took me years to be able to recognise it because i hadn't a darn clue what it was until i was 14...and i've had it even before that age. I'm not even sure if the PSHE/life/citizenship curriculum enforces even learning about depression...
Depression is important to learn about, but so is bipolar, social anxiety disorder, eating disorders, trauma stemming from abuse (e.g ptsd, anxiety disorders, depression etc), drug addictions (& addictions in general). I think ocd and generalised anxiety disorder are pretty common too. And then there's ADD + ADHD and autism. Borderline personality disorder too. That's not even a small chunk of the list but I believe that composes the most common disorders of all kinds? (feel free to disagree, i'd love to hear any feedback on what SHOULD be taught!)
What i want to do is find a way i can teach people about these disorders, how to recognise the most common/worst of them (i'm thinking eating disorders, depression, social and generalised anxiety, and what the difference between depression/bipolar is. again feel free to disagree on which ones are the most important!) - And where to seek support, including support for both those suffering disorders and the family/friends of sufferers, and especially to victims of abuse too (that's all even rarer to be taught...)
Frankly I had an awful time of coming to terms with my own issues, and i still haven't told my family, and I was 16 before i learnt where most support agencies were (including online agencies like this one) and the fact i'm literally 18 before i sought any help for it. If I can, I want to offer education early - to high school students - to stop them suffering like I did, like many of yall did too.
But you know, i haven't a clue where to start on this...So my question is: Where do i start? Where do i start going about my goal?
I already teach in high schools on a voluntary basis, i already know how that goes but even if I did have a plan i'd still need an organisation to approach shcools with (because they aren't going to accept the dreams of a teenager as a valid source of education xD) & get qualifications with that would enable me to teach it. That is, if directly teaching even IS the best way to go about it (again, any/all suggestions & feedback is appreciated!!).
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Comments
Seriously though, I think it might be worth partnering with mental health charities first or finding ways to be involved so you're covered on all grounds with facts, figures and experience just as background knowledge.
As for teaching experience you're on the right track :thumb: I also think it would be a great Idea to make phone calls to charities that do this sort of the stuff (educating+travelling) to ask how they got started, the first charity that comes to mind is FRANK, I know they teach about drugs and you're looking for a similar approach.
I hope this somewhat helped,
V:)
p.s you're a star