MY STORY:

Mental Health Help for College Students

MY BLOG:

This story came to me because of my own experience in college with anxiety and depression. I have found that, in college, what were previously manageable disorders have become more of a burden. I went through a very dark period that led me to transfer schools from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, 3,000 miles from home, to the University of Utah, 30 miles from home. Therapy and talking about my own issues have taught me to cope with these experiences and led me to want to help others accept their own plights and do the same.

One source I went to is a person whom I talked to many times when I first transferred home to the University of Utah. Annmarie Flock is a trusted source I could go to when I needed help. I knew she was knowledgeable about what goes on during sessions and what practices are put into play to deal with disorders. I knew she would add to my story by giving readers facts from a trusted source.

My next two sources are two people whom I know currently attend therapy. One is a friend of a friend and the other happens to be one of my closest friends. I knew Zoe Baukman slightly in high school. She was a grade younger than me. I also knew her significant other, whom I did not enjoy. When I heard about her struggle, I knew she would be a good person to talk to about why therapy can help. Addi Poddska and I talk at length about why everyone should go to therapy and how people should accept that everyone is a little messed up. I went to her first when my story idea came to me. She offered to do an interview right away. I thought she would be a good source because she is more of the typical anxiety/depression case, where multiple things add up in college giving her stress.

One obstacle I encountered was figuring out how much of Zoe’s story to put in. I wanted the readers to know what she had gone through, but I also wanted to respect Zoe’s privacy. For this reason, I had to sort through her interview and make sure I was wording things to protect Zoe.

I knew my focus of the story was going to be why and where you can receive therapy at the University of Utah. I do not think enough students utilize this service. It is much less expensive than a private therapist and the therapists all have experience with students. They are equipped to help. From there I knew I needed a ‘why’, so I wanted to find sources readers could relate to and maybe take inspiration from.

I learned that I write best when I outline everything I am going to say. I also freak out about the assignment until it is actually done, part of my anxiety coming into play. I often need to dump everything in my brain on a page and leave it for a couple of days then come back to the story and clean it up. It takes LOTS of cleaning up.

ABOUT ME:

Isabella Buoscio grew up in Park City, Utah, before attending the University of Wisconsin-Madison for freshman year of college. She started off studying dance but felt more drawn to other forms of creative art, such as film and writing. During this year she learned a lot about mental health and how her peers handled it. During the summer between freshman and sophomore year, she decided to transfer home to the University of Utah to benefit her own mental health. Since then she has become passionate about helping others who are struggling and coaxing them to try therapy.  She is studying communication arts, specifically video production and marketing.

She would love to run a large-scale campaign on mental health awareness in college one day. For now, she will continue taking classes and spending her free time hanging out with friends in the beautiful state of Utah.