On the occasion of the Mental Health Day, Sumy National Agrarian University hosted a quest aimed at supporting the psychological state of students and spreading information about the “How are you?” program among young people.
“How are you?” is an all-Ukrainian mental health support program founded by Olena Zelenska. For more information, please visit the official website: https://www.howareu.com/.
What is mental health? How to deal with stress? How to help loved ones fight panic? What to do if you don’t want to do anything? How to cope with emotions? The project coordinators answered all these questions during the event.
Besides Liudmyla Mykhailenko, a practical psychologist at Sumy National Agrarian University, the guests of the event Svitlana Havrylenko, a methodologist at the educational and methodological centre of the psychological service of Sumy Institute of Postgraduate Pedagogical Education, and Halyna Kurchenko, a practical psychologist at the Sumy Centre for Social and Psychological Rehabilitation of Children provided professional knowledge and skills.
Students of all faculties and years of study took part in the quest. However, the main attention was paid to freshmen, as they faced stress during the entrance exams and adaptation to the new educational and social environment.
In total, the participants went through 5 stations, at each of which they learned about the project “How are you?” and received information about improving mental health. An interesting experience for the students was the pre- and post-quest survey, as this way they were able to control their knowledge and skills. The stations were called:
- “How does stress manifest itself?”
- “How not to deal with stress?”
- “How to overcome stress quickly?”
- “How to help others in stress?
- “How to take care of emotional stability?”
At each of the stations, the participants acquired new knowledge and techniques, learned how to deal with stress and help their loved ones.
Liudmyla Mykhailenko, a practical psychologist of SNAU and organizer of the event, shares her impressions of the quest:
“SNAU took part in the World Mental Health Day. A quest for students was conducted at the university, where they learned more about the concept of mental health and figured out how to help themselves and others under stress.”
Diana Derevyanchenko, student rector of SNAU, talks about the main goal and period of the event’s organization:
“This is a large all-Ukrainian project. It is very important for the mental health of students because it concerns their psychological state. Despite the deadlines, we managed to organize everything in a way that would interest students. Such events are necessary because they show students that they need to share their emotional experiences to maintain their mental health.”
In addition, representatives of the SNAU took part in regional events. Nataliia Kolodnenko, Head of the Academic Department, and Liudmyla Mykhailenko, a practical psychologist of SNAU, attended a regional meeting with representatives of the Regional Military Administration and psychological centres in Sumy region.
