In recent years the topic of mental health has been put in the spotlight, encouraging open discussions, thoughts, and feelings while breaking down stigmas. In today’s society, providing proper mental health support for students is more important than ever. Active Minds was founded by Alison Malmon in 2003 after her older brother died by suicide in 2000. Active Minds was created to open the door to promoting mental health among young adults and empowering their generation to change the conversation around mental health.
Juniors Alex Luke, Liv Pearson, and Tessa Vogel came together and created the Benilde-St. Margaret’s Active Minds club so BSM students could be a part of a safe and non-judgmental space. “I think ending the stigma is the biggest part of helping students get help. Because a lot of people are scared like ‘Oh I’m going to get judged’ or ‘Oh, I’m not sick enough’ but like mental health, you just need to be comfortable getting the help you need in order to thrive,” Luke said.
I think ending the stigma is the biggest part of helping students get help. Because a lot of people are scared like ‘Oh I’m going to get judged’ or ‘Oh, I’m not sick enough’ but like mental health, you just need to be comfortable getting the help you need in order to thrive.”
— Alex Luke
The importance of mental health has gained significant traction for students and the idea around it is more apparent than ever before. “Mental health is really important to me and Alex and Tessa. It’s important to all of us, and so we really wanted to make people aware of mental health in our school and how big of an issue it is…We wanted to address it and make it more incorporated in the school, so we made a club,” Pearson said.
With the creation of this club, BSM hopes to make a positive impact on the community by providing resources and support to students who need it through support groups, counseling services, or just a chance to get a break from their everyday lives. This past week the Active Minds club hosted a valentines meeting for students to come in and color before school to help relieve any stress for the day. “It’s a lot of fun, my friends lead it and their ideas for the club are really exciting. I think that it’s important for people to take time for themselves even before school we’ve been like coloring and I love to color so I was really excited,” Berthoud said.
Through the efforts of this club, Active Minds has created a safe space for students to openly discuss mental health, support each other in their mental health journey, and advocate for each other’s well-being. “I’d recommend it because it’s a really good community of people. Who all care about mental health and [support] each other. I think it’s a great way to meet people and get support,” Pearson said.