Meer as 24% van Suid-Afrikaanse studente sukkel met depressie en ander geestesgesondheidsuitdagings, terwyl depressie onder studente w\u00eareldwyd, volgens studies, die hoogste is in vergelyking met die algemene publiek.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Daarmee saam is die stigma rondom depressie hoog onder jongmense. Persoonlik kan ek daarvan getuig oor hoe moeilik dit is om openlik oor depressie te praat, veral as gevolg van hoe die samelewing dinge definieer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nadat ek in gr. 10 met angs, depressie en paniekaanvalle gediagnoseer is, was dit vir my verskriklik moeilik om openlik te praat oor dit waarmee ek gesukkel het. Ek het gesukkel om te erken hoe ek soms aan myself skade doen om beter te voel. Dit was moeilik om vir myself te s\u00ea dat ek emosioneel uitgebrand is, dat ek verlore voel en dat ek nie weet waar ek myself bevind of waarheen ek op pad is nie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Die druk is veral groot onder mans, aangesien daar \u2019n verwagting is dat jy sterk moet wees en nie mag huil nie, want \u201cmans wat huil, is sissies.\u201d Hierdie druk hoop op, en uiteindelik be\u00efnvloed dit jou algehele welstand. Daarom het ek besluit om vanjaar, as deel van W\u00eareld-geestesgesondheids\u00admaand en W\u00eareld-geestesgesondheids\u00addag, wat jaarliks op 10 Oktober gedenk word, meer as 160 km van Kaapstad na Paternoster te trap om bewustheid te skep dat geestesgesondheid belangrik is, dat mense na hulself moet omsien en hul geestesgesondheid moet versorg soos wat hulle ander aspekte van hul gesondheid versorg.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hierdie veldtog was veral gemik op studente en jongmense om te s\u00ea dit is oukei om nie oukei te wees nie. Dit is oukei om met geestesgesondheids\u00aduitdagings gediagnoseer te word. Dit is nie die einde van die w\u00eareld nie, en die stigma moenie keer dat jy oor jou stryd praat nie. Nog minder moet depressie of die stigma jou keer om jou lewe voluit te leef.<\/i>\n<\/i><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ek het geleer dat dit beter is om met iemand te praat oor waarmee jy sukkel. Om jouself te aanvaar, beteken nie dat jy abnormaal is nie.<\/i><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
Trouens, die vraag is: Wat is \u201cnormaal\u201d en volgens wie se maatstawwe? Maar dit is dalk \u2019n gesprek vir \u2019n ander dag.<\/p>\n
Die belangrikste is dat jy ondersteuning moet kry \u2013 jy kan met vriende of familie gesels, en selfs met \u2019n sielkundige. As jy sukkel om met een sielkundige \u2019n verhouding te bou, is dit heeltemal oukei om \u2019n ander een te probeer totdat jy iemand vind wat jou beter verstaan. Om alleen deur die proses te gaan is nie ideaal nie, en dit is nie nodig nie.<\/i><\/p>\n
Hoekom fokus ek spesifiek op studente?<\/p>\n
Ek is nou al vyf jaar lank \u2019n student, en oor die afgelope paar jaar het ek gesien en gelees van talle studente wat hul eie lewe geneem het \u2013 veral in my laaste twee jaar aan die Universiteit Stellenbosch (US), toe ek op die Studenteraad gedien het, het verskeie studente hul eie lewe binne enkele maande geneem. Jy kan die druk op studente aanvoel, veral tydens eksamens. Die druk van jonk wees, van student wees, van sosiale kringe \u2013 dit alles kan oorweldigend raak, en ongelukkig neem sommige studente hul eie lewe.<\/p>\n
Daarom was hierdie veldtog daarop gemik om vir studente te s\u00ea dit is oukei om nie oukei te wees nie, maar dit is belangrik om ondersteuning te soek. <\/i><\/i><\/p>\n
Universiteite landwyd het verskeie ondersteuningsdienste beskikbaar \u2013 van sielkundige hulp tot aanpassingsprogramme. Hoewel universiteite nie altyd genoeg hulpbronne het om die groot aantal studente te akkommodeer nie, is daar steeds ondersteuningsprogramme beskikbaar, soos byvoorbeeld by die US, waar daar onlangs groepsessies begin is, waar studente hul stories kan deel en mekaar in hul helingsproses kan ondersteun.<\/p>\n
Die reis van Kaapstad na Paternoster was \u2019n groot uitdaging. Die 160 km het aanvanklik nie so baie geklink nie, maar toe ek manalleen daar op die Weskuspad (R27) begin trap, het dit gevoel of die pad nooit klaarkom nie. <\/p>\n
Ek het binne die eerste 40 km my eerste pap wiel opgedoen en my eerste spaarband gebruik. N\u00e1 60 km het my tweede band gebars, en ek het die laaste spaarband gebruik. <\/p>\n
Ek het begin stres, want as ek nog \u2019n pap wiel sou kry, sou ek in die moeilikheid wees.<\/p>\n
Ongeveer 80 km in het dit begin re\u00ebn \u2013 vir omtrent 40 tot 50 km. Toe ek by Langebaan se vulstasie aankom, was ek 120 km in, en my foon se battery was op 1%, en toe gaan hy dood. Hier moes ek toe maar \u2019n tydjie wag om my foon so \u2019n bietjie te laai en n\u00e1 so tien minute het ek die groot trap weer voortgesit \u2013 tot in Paternoster.<\/p>\n
Met my aankoms by Paternoster se ingang besef ek toe dat ek meer as 160 km afgel\u00ea het. Ek was sopnat van die re\u00ebn, maar ek kon vir myself s\u00ea \u201cwat \u2019n ongelooflike reis\u201d.<\/p>\n
Ek het dit nie vir myself gedoen nie, maar om bewustheid te skep dat dit regtig oukei is om nie oukei te wees nie, en dat dit oukei is om hulp te vra \u2013 al is dit net vir \u2019n vriend om te luister.<\/p>\n
\n .<\/span> William Sezoe is \u2019n nagraadse joernalistiekstudent aan die Universiteit van Kaapstad. Hy het in 2019 by New Orleans Sekond\u00ear skool gematrikuleer, waar hy ook onderhoofseun was.<\/i><\/p><\/i><\/i><\/i><\/i>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Meer as 24% van Suid-Afrikaanse studente sukkel met depressie en ander geestesgesondheidsuitdagings, terwyl depressie onder studente w\u00eareldwyd, volgens studies, die hoogste is in vergelyking met die algemene publiek.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":44992,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_linkdex":"","_yoast_wpseo_content_score":"","_yoast_wpseo_inclusive_language_score":"","_yoast_wpseo_is_cornerstone":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-description":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-image":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-image-id":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-description":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-image":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-image-id":"","newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","_EventAllDay":"","_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":"","_EventShowMapLink":"","_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":"","_EventVenueID":"","_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":"","_VenueShowMapLink":"","_application":"","_batch_id":"","_company_name":"","_company_tagline":"","_company_twitter":"","_company_video":"","_company_website":"","_custom_id":"a07c1c4f-331a-4cc6-a2e5-beb7c96740d1","_EventDuration":"","_EventOrigin":"","_EventTimezoneAbbr":"","_featured":"","_filled":"","_job_expires":"","_job_location":"","_media_credit":"","_media_credit_url":"","_menu_item_menu_item_parent":"","_menu_item_object":"","_menu_item_object_id":"","_menu_item_target":"","_menu_item_type":"","_menu_item_url":"","_menu_item_xfn":"","_navis_media_can_distribute":"","_navis_media_credit_org":"","_OrganizerOrigin":"","_provider":"","_pum_built_in":"","_pum_default_theme":"","_pum_form_conversion_count":"","_remote_id":"","_remote_name":"","_remote_position":"","_report_frequency":"","_report_reference_dates":"","_send_attempts":"","_site_id":"","_sitemap_exclude":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","_sitemap_priority":"","_source_url":"","_subscription_period":"","_subscription_period_interval":"","_subscription_price":"","_tec_slr_enabled":"","_tec_slr_layout":"","_template_type":"","_ticket_end_date":"","_ticket_start_date":"","_tribe_aggregator_allow_multiple_organizers":"","_tribe_aggregator_content_type":"","_tribe_aggregator_file":"","_tribe_aggregator_finalized":"","_tribe_aggregator_hash":"","_tribe_aggregator_import_id":"","_tribe_aggregator_import_name":"","_tribe_aggregator_interactive":"","_tribe_aggregator_origin":"","_tribe_aggregator_post_status":"","_tribe_aggregator_preview":"","_tribe_aggregator_source_name":"","_tribe_aggregator_type":"","_tribe_default_ticket_provider":"","_tribe_hide_attendees_list":"","_tribe_rsvp_for_event":"","_tribe_ticket_capacity":"","_tribe_ticket_header":"","_tribe_ticket_show_description":"","_tribe_ticket_show_not_going":"","_tribe_ticket_version":"","_type":"","_VenueOrigin":"","_wp_attachment_context":"","_wp_attachment_image_alt":"","_wp_font_face_file":"","_wp_old_date":"","_yoast_wpseo_estimated-reading-time-minutes":"","_yoast_wpseo_focuskeywords":"","_yoast_wpseo_focuskw_text_input":"","_yoast_wpseo_keywordsynonyms":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_block-catalog":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_job_listing_type":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_nova_retailer":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_publication":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_tribe_events_cat":"","_yoast_wpseo_videositemap-duration":"","_yoast_wpseo_videositemap-rating":"","_menu_item_classes":[],"_tribe_modified_fields":[],"_wp_attachment_backup_sizes":[],"_wp_suggested_privacy_policy_content":[],"_yoast_post_redirect_info":[],"_yoast_wpseo_video_meta":[],"activation_date":"","archive_insertion_is_repeating":"","archive_insertion_posts_count":"","article_feature_media":"","article_feature_type":"","article_main_image_caption":"","article_media_icon":"","article_template":"","author_byline":"William 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