The staff editorial is the majority opinion of The Murray State News Editorial Board.
“Haha oh my God, that was so awkward I want to kill myself.”
“What is she wearing? Did she even try? She looks homeless.”
“I don’t understand why he won’t just try to get better. Start living your life and snap out of it, you know?”
“Jesus, eat a burger or something. You’re SO skinny!”
These are sentences we sometimes say to our friends and family in casual conversations but are emotional daggers to those suffering from depression, emotional trauma and eating disorders.
These are sentences filled with the weight of issues not to be taken lightly.
Instances of sexual assault, suicide, eating disorders and domestic violence are the subjects of news stories about events on this campus time and time again.
We published a news story last year titled, “It had taken over my life.” While it was one instance of many, it ended up the story of sexual assault that took over this campus and caught the right people’s attention.
Now, we have the LiveSafe app, we’re required to take Title IX sexual harassment training and more people have been hired in the Title IX office.
Three years ago, Jacob Derting, a 20-year-old, jumped to his death from the seventh floor of Price Doyle Fine Arts.
He was one of the 18 percent of undergraduate students who have seriously considered attempting suicide, according to the Suicide Prevention Resource Center.
Since then, Murray State has hired more counselors, started new programs and opened new centers.
You’ve seen this phrase time and time again in similar “call-to-action” pieces about mental health, but it bears repeating: you are not alone.
Not only are there other people who go through what you’re going through – there are people who can help. There are people with open doors, open hearts and open minds ready and willing to hear your story.
Whether you’re suffering from the effects of sexual assault, body image issues, unhealthy relationships, stress or any number of other life problems, there is someone available at Murray State to help.
An article in The News this week details the effects Tinder has on its users.
While it may just be an online dating app to most people, the feelings of rejection, low self-esteem and loneliness it can cause are not to be taken lightly either.
Counseling shouldn’t be a last resort. It’s an easily accessible tool to help manage and alleviate any problems you may be dealing with – and there is no problem too small.
The Murray State Women’s Center’s goal is “to foster a world where men and women are respected.” Despite the name, this is a safe place for all students to turn to when dealing with gender crises, relationship problems, sexual violence, stalking, body image issues, alcohol problems and more.
University Counseling Services offers help with homesickness, anxiety, anger management and grief, to name a few.
Murray State’s Psychological Center offers counseling on many of the same issues as Counseling Services, along with hyperactivity and impulsivity.
The Counseling and Assessment Center, which opened last fall, provides psychoeducational services for mood disorders, learning problems and brain development disorders.
These resources are at your disposal. They are here for you.
You are not a burden.
You are a person who is hurting – a person deserving of love and acceptance, not resentful tolerance and ridicule.