As Washington DC rages with politics and pandemic prevention, a group of Cooper students decided to visit the city with a slightly different aim in mind- to learn how they could help change the conversation around mental health. These students are all members of the Cooper Chapter of Active Minds: the nation’s premier non-profit organization that strives to change the conversation about mental health. With over 500 chapters throughout the US, Active Minds is committed to saving lives and creating long lasting change. At Cooper, the club focuses on reducing stress and creating an empowering environment, letting students speak freely about mental health. 

The Cooper Active Minds board members, along with Ms. Donahoo, Dr. Estrada, and Mr. Popp, attended the Active Minds National Conference with three goals: to learn how to battle stigma, to see how they could improve their local chapter, and to meet like minded individuals passionate about mental health. Engaging with the broader mental health community in this way provided some valuable perspective: the team learnt that the struggles with social and emotional wellbeing were common to many high school and college students but at the same time, these took on different flavors in different places. They also learnt about the changing landscape of mental health and how to navigate it: each school year faced different economic and political challenges but the principles of resilience, togetherness, and encouragement remained the same.  

Attending panels, meeting people, and learning from different perspectives, they gained new insight about mental health advocacy. Student-led roundtables let these individuals network with college students, learning about the Active Minds Chapters on college campuses and how to apply collegiate strategies to the Active Minds club at Cooper. Similarly, a specific session focusing on resources to support mental health in high schools let colleges see the impact Active Minds had at Cooper.  

Some key facts include: 

-One in five adults have a diagnosable illness. 

-Fifty percent of us will endure a mental health condition in our life. 

-The second leading cause of death among students is suicide. 

-Common signs of depression include trouble concentrating, feeling sad or empty, and a lack of energy.

-Common signs of anxiety include irritability, restlessness, and excessive worry.

Keep an eye out for your friends and watch out for these signs because one text, just checking up on a friend, can make the biggest difference. Self care is important too: get those 9 hours of sleep, go on that morning run, and eat healthy. Everybody deals with mental health meaning that everybody can play a role in Active Minds. Changing the conversation, one Cooper student at a time, we hope to make a lasting impact, starting with fostering a supportive and inclusive environment at The John Cooper School.