Mental health is a topic that many people shy away from, as the topic is a sensitive on. 

Especially here at Clements, we go through lots of stress as our school is competitive and demanding. 

“I feel like Clements definitely has an environment that isn’t as present in other schools, which affects mental health,” senior Naisha Vinayak said. 

Clements is a highly ranked school, and with that comes a few consequences. 

“Since we are one of the highest academic schools, we pressure ourselves to wanting to achieve more than we can do,” junior Sophia Zapata said.

  But the truth is that many people struggle with mental health issues that they are silent about. The reason so many people are silent on these issues is that many people are unaware of how to speak of this topic and are not fully educated on it. This is because there is a stigma around mental health. And we have to fight it.

“Especially at Clements, I know a lot of people who suffer from mental health disorders because of the harsh educational environment,” junior Marissa Yeh said. 

You are not alone. 1 in 5 adults experience mental health illness (NAMI). 17% of youth (ages 6-17) deal with a mental health disorder as well. So many people around the world suffer with these disorders, in different ways, shapes, and forms. No matter who you are, you are not alone. There is always someone who can relate to you in any way and someone who is willing to offer a listening ear. There are many organizations that are working to reduce the stigma and educate the community on mental health. 

“Their (SAVE’s) creative ideas are definitely engaging the community and spreading awareness about the issues surrounding mental health, and trying to break the stigma that many communities have in relation to it,” senior, Naisha Vinayak said.

One of these organizations is SAVE, which stands for Suicide Awareness Voices of Education. It is a national charity with more than 30 charters in different cities that spread awareness for mental health and suicide prevention. I am chair of the SAVE Houston Charter, and many of the leads of the charter are students here at Clements. Anyone who has an interest in mental health and suicide prevention or becoming more educated in the topic are welcomed to join! Our charter holds many events and fundraisers to gather proceeds for mental health and suicide prevention research. 

“I’ve participated in a few food and drink related fundraisers for SAVE,” senior Ciara Sanchez, Survivor Support lead of SAVE said. “We went and ordered pizza and we told them that we wanted to donate our proceeds to save.”

One of these events is occurring on September 18th, 2021. It is a walkathon called Emotions in Motion. We will begin with a speech about why SAVE does what they do, spread awareness for suicide prevention because many people know someone who has died for suicide. We would do anything we can to educate the community and inform them on what to do in order to prevent suicide. Then we will warm up. After this, we begin our run! We will get sweaty and tired, then we will end with food. There will be a tent set up for your loved and missed ones too, so you will be able to write something dedicated to them then it will be hung up. All proceeds will go to mental health and suicide prevention research and educating the public through events, social media, and other forms of communication. 

If you’re passionate about mental health and suicide prevention, take a look at the SAVE website- save.org – and see if you would be interested. We would love to see you guys out there!

“I think the walkathon will raise awareness for mental health because when you have activities and big events people tend to hear about them easier,” Ciara Sanchez said. “It’s just more people who hear about it so I feel like it would raise awareness.”