World Mental Health Day is celebrated globally on October 10. As we celebrate, this year's theme "Mental Health is a Universal Human Right" couldn't be more fitting. Every individual, regardless of their background, gender, age, or nationality, has the fundamental right to good mental health. According to the World Health Organization, one in four people will be affected by a mental health issue at some point in their lives. This underscores the pervasive nature of mental health challenges. Moreover, mental health is not just an absence of mental illness but a state of well-being where one can realize their potential, cope with life's stresses, and contribute to their community. Here are some ways we can safeguard this fundamental human right.

• Destigmatizing mental health conversations. Non-judgmental and compassionate discussions about mental well-being are vital. 
• Prioritizing self-care. Take time for yourself, practice mindfulness, engage in hobbies, and get enough rest. 
• Maintaining strong social connections and seeking professional help when needed can go a long way in managing our overall mental well-being. 
• Promoting mental health awareness and advocating for policies that prioritize mental health care on a community level is essential. We can contribute by participating in community initiatives, volunteering, or supporting organizations that work to improve mental health access and services. 

By recognizing mental health as a human right, we can foster a more compassionate and inclusive world where every individual can thrive.

Here are some local resources for accessing and advocating for mental health:

• Retriever Integrated Health (RIH) brings together UMBC's health and counseling services to all UMBC students and supports holistic well-being and success.
• National Alliance on Mental Health (NAMI) is a mental health organization dedicated to building better lives for individuals affected by mental illness.
• American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) is voluntary health organization that advocates research and education around suicide. 

UMBC has announced the projects selected to receive grants in the 2022 - 2023 rounds of the Hrabowski Fund for Innovation competition, including two projects by staff in Student Affairs' Initiatives for Identity, Inclusion, and Belonging (i3b).The Hrabowski Fund supports initiatives to enhance teaching and learning at UMBC, with specific emphasis on innovative approaches to increase student success.

Assessing Sense of Belonging and Dialogue Skills in a FYS Course: This team is now led by i3b Acting Director Ciara Christian M.A. '18, Applied Sociology, and Ph.D. '22, Language, Literacy, and Culture. They will utilize data collected from a first-year seminar course that employs dialogue pedagogy to learn which practices contribute to first-year and transfer students' sense of belonging in the classroom. 

As a Minority Serving Institution, UMBC's students bring rich experiences from all corners of the globe. While the benefits of diversity are evident, students are not always well-equipped to engage meaningfully across differences. Additionally, stakeholders across campus have anecdotally noted several casualties of COVID in relationships--the ability to practice empathy and the inclination to dialogue across differences of identity, worldview, and lived experience. These casualties contribute to a lack of connection, making it imperative for UMBC to explore the ways in which students find, create, and experience a sense of belonging on campus.

LOTUS Mentoring Program--Leading Others to Thriving and Universal Success: Angelina Jenkins, i3b's assistant director, will develop, pilot, and assess an identity-based mentoring program targeted at supporting undergraduate Asian, Pacific Islander, and Desi American (APIDA) students at UMBC. 

UMBC's current student population boasts broad diversity, but as a Minority Serving Institution, students of color make up about 52 percent of the student population. More specifically, 19 percent of UMBC's student population is made up of APIDA communities. In 2021, Michelle Obama celebrated UMBC as an Asian-Serving Institution, yet UMBC has no initiatives or interventions that center these populations. With a primary goal of building cultural confidence through peer-to-peer connections, APIDA students will increase their sense of belonging, build community connections, and have a deeper understanding of their racial and ethnic identity.

Learn more about i3b.

When we suspect relationships are mentally, emotionally or physically violent or abusive, why do we all of a sudden feel like "it's none of our business?" 

Good question! Is it ever REALLY our business to get involved when we suspect that someone we know is in a relationship that is unhealthy? Maybe we are asking the wrong question. The REAL question is, How can we support people that we care about, when we believe that they are in a relationship that is hurting them? Wouldn't we want someone to show up for us if we were struggling? 

More than 1 in 3 women (35.6%) and more than 1 in 4 men (28.5%) in the U.S. will experience rape, physical violence and/or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetime.

Overall the percentages of Trans and LGBTQ+ individuals who are affected byintimate partner violence are estimated to be even higher than their cisgender counterparts. 

Based on these statistics, the chances are you've known someone, will know someone or will be someone who will experience a relationship that is mentally, emotionally or physically abusive. 

So what do you say? Where do you start? 

Consider these tips: 

1. Start by initiating a conversation that lets your friend know that you care about them and are concerned: Start this conversation with an affirmative statement like, "You're always so fun to be around. I've missed you!"
2. Avoid being Accusatory: If you know your friend's relationship is unhealthy, it's okay to say, "I've noticed you're always on your phone. Is there anything going on that you want to talk about?" Instead of, "Stop answering that. Just tell them you're busy." 
3. Be Supportive: Listen to your friend and let them open up about the situation on their own terms. Don't be forceful with the conversation and remind them that you want tohelp. 
4. Focus on the Behavior: Instead of labeling their partner as "abusive" or "bad," focus on the unhealthy behaviors you've seen and provide your friend with a safe space to talk about it. (https://www.joinonelove.org/learn/i-did-a-thing-is-my-friend-in-an-abusive-relationship/) 

Resources here on campus that provide emotional and mental health support. Both resourcesoffer individual and group counseling and can help refer students to outside resources. 

• UMBC Retriever Integrated Health
• UMBC Women's Center
• TurnAround Rape Crisis Center
• National Domestic Violence Hotline

Retriever Integrated Health is excited to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month!  To kick things off, staff shared information about the significance of celebrating the month beginning on the 15th and held a fun discussion about their favorite dishes from Hispanic countries, like Cuban coffee made in a colador, Dominican mofongo, chicken ropa vieja, and tamales!  Celebrating the wide variety of cultures, food, art, music, dance, traditions, achievements, and contributions of Hispanic and Latine people and countries is an important part of celebrating the people who make up the UMBC community!

As the campus center for medical and mental health needs, RIH also recognizes the importance of acknowledging the many barriers that Hispanic and Latine people face when trying to access services, leading to disparities in health and healthcare.

• Stigma within Hispanic and Latine communities can create a reluctance to access mental health services and increases feelings of shame for those who want to seek help.  

• The rates of suicidal thoughts, plans and attempts are rising among Hispanic and Latine young adults, though they remain lower than the overall rates for young adults in the U.S.  

• In 2022, Hispanic and Latine folx had the highest uninsured rates of any racial/ethnic group in the U.S., leading to 10% of Hispanic and Latine adults reporting an inability to get needed medical care due to cost.

It is with this in mind that RIH encourages Hispanic and Latine students to reach out to schedule needed medical and mental health appointments! RIH medical services include sick care as well as preventative care (including immunizations).  RIH counseling services are free and confidential for students.  For students who have questions about insurance, RIH has specialists to support students who need to enroll in the UMBC plan or Medicaid. There are also a number of community organizations in the Baltimore area that provide bilingual medical and mental health resources and community outreach such as CentroSOL and Latino Providers Network.  These resources can be accessed by not just UMBC students but also the greater community.