What can make mental health better? iPads. And maybe peers. But certainly iPads
Also: me flying out to talk to you and swivel chairs and Metallica's feelings
I don’t charge for this newsletter and heaven knows you can listen to the Depresh Mode podcast, for free if you so choose. That’s because the whole thing is donation-driven. It’s public radio style, depending on people recognizing that to make this stuff costs money. If enough people donate, we can exist. If they don’t, the whole thing will shut down. Would you like it to keep happening? Go here, pick a level that works for you, then select DEPRESH MODE from the list of shows. And thank you.
Peer counselors: they’re counselors, sort of, but they’re also just peers. I’ll explain.
An article in the Chronicle of Higher Education looks at the increasingly popular peer counseling model in colleges and universities. That is, taking students, providing them with a modicum of training, and making them available to other students who are having a rough go of things.
It’s been used for decades and has had some success. Students find other students more approachable than going to a licensed professional. The down side, of course, is that while the peer counselors may be relatable, they don’t have anything like the skills and training of a legit mental health professional.
And now, as we sink deeper into what was already a mental health crisis, we’re running into issues of scale.
Peer-support programs offer the potential to both lighten the load on campus counselors and to reach students who, for various reasons, might never seek their support. Demand for the programs is high, with more than 60 percent of surveyed students who haven’t tried peer support saying they’d like to. Peer supporters say the work is rewarding and helps prepare them for graduate programs in psychology and social work.
But college-run programs aren’t a panacea, and they carry risks — particularly in an era that has seen parents sue colleges for allegedly mishandling their students’ mental-health needs. The programs can be expensive to build and operate, requiring training and supervision of student volunteers. Absent additional hires, they can add to the strain on already stretched campus counselors. And they can be emotionally taxing for student volunteers, who may be struggling with their own mental-health issues.
I don’t know if you’ve noticed, and of course you have…
That I’m pretty interested in the long-term mental health effects of the pandemic on society in general. The thing - let me capitalize that - THING we’ve been going through for the last couple of years has affected our actual physiology in a variety of ways, depending on whether you’ve had the virus or not, whether you’re vaccinated, etc. But the collective experience of living through all of this together, the fear and anxiety and grief and uncertainty and despair, that is some shared stuff and it is strong. Just as another generation was defined by going through the Great Depression, we are going to be defined by this.
We’re messed up. We’re going to stay messed up. But it will be better if we understand what it is we’re going through .
To that end, I travel around and give speeches on this topic, through my friends at Collective Speakers:
THE OTHER HEALING: TRAUMA AND MENTAL RECOVERY AFTER COVID
The impact of COVID-19 is usually measured by infections, hospitalizations, and its economic devastation, but even those who do not personally contract COVID must grapple with long term mental health consequences. Long after a vaccine emerges and spreads, we as a society will need to deal with our trauma going forward. You simply can’t go through all that depression, anxiety, despair, and disruption unscathed. In a new talk that can be presented virtually or in-person, author and podcaster John Moe explains how to understand our individual and collective suffering and what can be done about it. Drawing from his experiences and conversations around simple and complex trauma, John tries to understand what it means in the short term, what it means in the long term, and how to address it.
I can talk to your group. I can fly out to where you are. I’ve done it before a lot of times. People seem to be really helped by what I do. Follow that link and book me up,
Okay, let’s get these people more iPads
This is my strategy, based on a new report on what happens when veterans get iPads. Nearly 99,000 iPads were distributed to vets by the Department of Veterans Affairs at the beginning of the pandemic in order to facilitate telehealth appointments for mental health.
The investment appeared to pay off, according to the study led by VA Palo Alto researcher Kritee Gujral. The group of vets with the devices saw a 36% drop in emergency room visits linked to suicidal behavior, a 22% decline in the likelihood of suicide behavior and a 20% reduction in overall emergency department visits, although researchers noted that there were limitations to that data, given that COVID-19 kept many away from hospitals.
The veterans also increased their attendance at therapy sessions, up nearly four visits per year, according to the study.
The encouraging findings also were seen in veterans deemed as high risk for suicide by the VA, with even higher results in one measure -- that group accessed nearly six more therapy sessions per year, according to the study.
If you make therapy and doctor appointments easier, people will go to more of them and they will feel more hope. Good job, everyone. Now let’s get iPads and free high-speed internet to everyone.
327.2k likes, 30.4k retweets, all deserved
Archduke Metallica.
I spend all day with my dogs
Even when I leave the house, it’s often to take the dogs on long walks. So it’s not surprising that Sally is very very very attached.
I volunteered at a peer support centre in university and it's a lot of active listening and no advice giving. I don't remember the content of any sessions except for people who were lonely and having a hard time making friends. And sex pests calling our phone line. If anyone seemed like they needed professional assistance we were quick to point them to the professional counselling service two floors above our office.