Makerere University World Mental Health Day 2019: Mental Health Promotion and Suicide Prevention
Today. Thursday 10th October, 2019 marks World Mental Health Day. This year’s theme is extremely useful and comes at a time when we actually have to address those two issues in a significant way at the university. Mental health should be promoted more vigorously than ever before and we should do whatever it takes to prevent suicide and promote mental health.
Some people’s attitude towards the word “mental” is often negative. It is associated with people who are experiencing severe mental health challenges and people always want to DISASSOCIATE with such people. Severe mental health challenges are like any severe disease. They can affect anyone and quite often start in a small way, by our failure to address things like small stressors or behaviours.
Poor mental health affects human beings in the same way other diseases affect us. As a matter of fact, mental health brings about poor physical health. “There is no health without mental health”. Mental health should be a concern for all and should be prioritised.
The suicides, bad driving, domestic violence, school dropouts, failures to complete university, poor grades, lack of sleep and other disorders are linked to poor mental health. There is no aspect of health that can be divorced from mental health. Let us mind our personal mental health, family mental health, university mental health, and community mental health.
Henry Nsubuga
Manager, Counselling and Guidance Centre,
Plot 106, Mary Stuart Road (Opposite Mary Stuart Hall),
Makerere University
Email: hnsubuga[at]cgc.mak.ac.ug
Tel: +256-772-558022
Click here for more information about the Counselling and Guidance Centre