A $10,000 donation from RBC has allowed Olds College to be the second post-secondary institution in Canada to use BreathingRoom, a program designed to improve the mental health of students.
BreathingRoom is an eight-module program completed online that includes resources such as videos, quizzes and self-assessment tools. Since Olds College is an iPad school, an app version is expected to come.
The program is a year old and was born out of a mental health strategy at Mount Royal University. Interest in BreathingRoom has grown since its inception.
The Canadian Institute of Natural and Integrative Medicine built BreathingRoom and some of its sponsors include Mount Royal University, SickKids Foundation, University of Calgary, Alberta Health Services and the RBC Foundation.
“RBC is always happy to support programs that support youth,” said Jean Reichenbach, branch manager of RBC in Olds, who presented the cheque to college officials on Dec. 10.
Early feedback to the program has been good, according to Fritz Latimer, a nurse at Olds College.
She said one of the goals is to make students aware of when they should seek professional help.
“They're also finding that as they go through the tools and the self-assessment stuff, students are building resiliency and are better with coping skills,” Latimer said.
Karla Petersen, a senior development officer at the college said BreathingRoom has allowed many students to improve how they deal with anxiety and stress. Under the supervision of physicians, some have been able to decrease or cease their medication intake.
Statistics from the 2013 National College Health Assessment indicate that post-secondary education is tough on students' psyches.
According to Latimer and Petersen, about 10 per cent of Olds College students responded to the survey:
56 per cent said they felt hopeless
93.6 per cent said they felt overwhelmed
65 per cent felt “very lonely”
70.7 per cent felt “very sad”
43.1 per cent were “so depressed that it was difficult to function”
52.1 said they felt “overwhelming anxiety”
13.8 per cent seriously considered suicide
4.1 per cent attempted suicide
74.4 per cent did not seek the help of a professional
Latimer said these numbers are typical of those across the nation.
Stress levels are high at post-secondary institutions because many students have left home and are grappling with new-found independence and financial stress, she said.
Petersen said high achievers and those who struggle make up a minority of the student population. Most are in the middle and don't draw a lot of attention, good or bad, which makes it difficult to gauge their mental health.
“That's why we love this program so much is that it helps all the students.”
