Mental health issues can are a lot more common than they may appear. That’s why the counselors are working to make sure every student gets the help they need.

“There are a lot of ways mental health issues can be displayed and it can look different in every person,” Map-Pen counselor Susie Deyoung said. “The more obvious signs are crying, anger, self-harm, and /or panic / anxiety attacks.  Some signs that are harder to detect are when a person becomes withdrawn, when they’re not eating, or not sleeping.”

Finding help can be a challenge for a lot of students. Therapy costs a lot of money, and even just finding the courage to talk to a counselor can be hard. Luckily, there are a multitude of ways a student can report their or a friend’s mental problems.

“Any student can walk into the counselors’ office at any time and ask to speak with a counselor,” Mrs. Deyoung said. “If a student is needing assistance, they will be seen immediately.  There also is a QR code located in the counselors’ office and around the school that can be completed as a request to see their counselor.  If there are issues when school is not in session, a student can make a report via the Speak Up App.  Counselors also receive information about a student needing assistance from assistant principals, teachers, and other students.”

However, counselors are very busy with other tasks such as schedule changes, and often can’t see students right away. In order to make sure every student gets the help they need, the counselors recommended some ideas to help you while waiting.

“If it is an emergency students should not wait to be called in, but should find a trusted adult right away,” A-Caq counselor Jenna Alleman said. “If it is not an emergency, one of my best pieces of advice is journaling or confiding in a trusted friend. Sometimes just getting all the feelings and emotions out can help tremendously.”

There are lots of things that go on behind the scenes when a student goes up to a counselor. This way, they could find the best course of action for you to take.

“As the counseling team we are in constant communication to get students the help they need,” Mrs. Alleman said. “We do not discuss names, but will discuss the case to brainstorm together to find the best course of action for a student. We have many resources available for students and parents to find a good fit for services outside of school if necessary.”

With over a third of the students coming back from quarantine, mental health has definitely taken a decline in some. However, with the right use of Katy-ISD’s tools, counselors believe that we could all get through this. 

“Everyone’s excited about being back at school,” Sm-Z counselor Jeff Roth said. “But there’s a lot of kids that forgot how school’s run, forgot [how many] kids [were] in the hallway, the lunch room [etc]. Families [and] kids are getting sick. So it’s extremely difficult for kiddos right now.[But] I think [if] we can all come together, we could all get through it.”