By: Community Officer Jeff Kirchman
According to a Johns Hopkins University study, nearly 1 in 10 people in the United States have experienced a mental health crisis within the past year. Mental Health America states that nearly half of the U.S. population has dealt with a diagnosable mental health condition in their lifetime. The most common conditions include anxiety, addiction and substance use disorders, bipolar disorder, and depression.
Navigating a mental health crisis isn’t unusual — it’s downright common.
And, whether you’re a student, an employee, or anyone else in our University community, the start of a new academic year can involve stressors that spark or add to mental health challenges.
Luckily, there are a wide variety of resources available for anyone in our community that may need assistance in coping with these struggles.
- University Health Service/UHS Mental Health Services – All UW-Madison students are eligible for services such as individual, group and virtual counseling, substance abuse and eating disorder help, wellness workshops and much more.
- Employee Assistance Office/EAO – Any UW-Madison employee can turn to the EAO for “timely help with life’s challenges”. This includes services such as personal counseling and critical incident response, and 24/7/365 access to professional counselors through their partnership with LifeMatters.
- Dane County 24-Hour Mental Health Crisis Line – Journey Mental Health Center, Dane County’s official mental health provider, can be reached any time of the day or night at (608) 280-2600.
- NAMI Dane County – The National Alliance on Mental Illness’ local chapter offers a great variety of mental health resources for all Dane County residents.
- 911 – For those in crisis who don’t know where to turn, call 911 for access to UHS Co-Responders, Madison Fire Department’s Community Alternative Response Emergency Services (CARES) team, or UW-Madison Police officers certified in Crisis Intervention Training (CIT).
- 988 – The National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is now available as easily as any other emergency service.
This is a small sampling of local services and resources to help in times of crisis. Please don’t suffer in silence; reach out for access to those who want to do nothing more than help you.