Supporting Students Experiencing Mental Health Crises

Student Wellbeing Series: Topic Intro | Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

Student Wellbeing Series
Part 3:
Supporting Students Experiencing Mental Health Crises

Overview

Research continues to show that students in higher education are increasingly facing mental health challenges, but many still do not seek help (Abrams, 2021; Hunt & Eisenberg, 2010). A 2021 study by the ACHA found that over 60% of college students report experiencing significant levels of stress, with anxiety and depression being the most common issues (Abrams, 2021). The Healthy UC Davis initiative lists common mental health conditions among college students, including anxiety disorders, depression, eating disorders, addiction, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), with many students experiencing multiple conditions simultaneously. 

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Mental Health Trends 

In their 2016 guide for promoting students’ mental health, the UC Office of the President reported that in the previous 8 years there had been a 54% increase in the utilization of counseling resources across the UC system. This number may have been underreported, as many students may not have been accessing resources or seeking structured help. The report also noted that 1 in 4 UC students seeking counseling services received psychotropic medication and that medications for mental health represented the largest share of prescriptions through the UC Student Health Insurance Plans (UCOP, 2016). 

These results mirror national trends showing an increase in the utilization of mental health services on college campuses. For example, according to a 2015 Center for Collegiate Mental Health (CCMH) report, data from 93 institutions showed an average increase of 29.6% in students seeking counseling services and an average increase of 38.4% in counseling center appointments (cited in UCOP, 2016).   

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Strategies for Supporting Students Experiencing Mental Health Crises

Strategies Explanations Examples 
Look for indicators that a student is experiencing distress UCOP (2016) notes that instructors are often the first to notice a student experiencing distress: “in these situations, you do not have to take on the role of a counselor or attempt to diagnose a student. You need only to notice the signs of distress and communicate these to the appropriate resource.” While the presence of one or more indicators of mental or emotional distress does not necessarily mean that a student is in need of additional support, the more indicators that can be observed, the more likely it is that a student is experiencing a crisis. 

Academic indicators can include (but are not limited to): 

  • Repeated absences, missed assignments, or exams.   
  • Expressions of overly morbid or violent thoughts in assignments or activities. 
  • Overblown or disproportionate responses to grades or other assessments. 

Other indicators can include: 

  • Behavioral or emotional outbursts or acting withdrawn. 
  • Physical indicators like deterioration in appearance or personal hygiene. 
  • Frequent or chronic illness. 

For a more complete list of potential indicators of mental or emotional distress, see UCOPs (2016) guide for faculty and staff and the Toolkits to Support the Full Inclusion of Students with Early Psychosis in Higher Education. 

Respond compassionately to students experiencing mental health crises It is important that you respond with compassion when students are experiencing distress, and when possible, assist them in accessing the resources or services they may need. A compassionate response may include having “a direct conversation with the student to express your concern and offer resource referral information” (UCOP, 2016), as well as working with the student to ensure that he/she/they do not fall too far behind. 

Hunt and Eisenberg (2010) note that one of the main barriers to students’ seeking mental health services is a lack of awareness of resources available to them on their campus. In addition to providing students with information about health and wellbeing resources at UC Davis (see Additional Resource below), remind students that these resources exist throughout the quarter and provide links on Canvas. Furthermore, you can also consider building flexibility into your attendance and late-work policies, within reason, and working with students to establish plans for getting back on track if they fall behind.   

Health 34 is a team of healthcare educators and providers who will deliver free, non-emergency support and service navigation for mental health and basic medical care to every segment of the UC Davis campus. They are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at (530) 754-3434 to provide basic mental health, support folks during hard times and help them navigate to existing resources and services before problems become crises. They also help with recovery after a crisis. 

Combat stigma by normalizing help seeking behaviors Eisenberg et al. (2009) found that while students were concerned with the perceived public stigma toward mental health issues, personal stigmatization was more closely related to lower help-seeking. In other words, students’ own negative perceptions of mental health and/or related treatments in turn negatively influenced their likelihood to seek help when distressed.     Challenge students’ personal stigmatizing attitudes by presenting accessing mental health services on campus as both normal and healthy. Make students aware of resources on campus, such as the UC Davis Counseling Services and the openaccess resources related to health and wellbeing from Healthy UC Davis. You can do this by linking to these resources on your syllabus and on Canvas and encouraging students to visit them during especially stressful times in the quarter. To the extent that you are comfortable, you may consider sharing your experiences with utilizing mental health resources as a way to normalize help seeking.