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Wednesday, APRIL 9, 2014 | MOUNT PLEASANT, MICH. | ISSUE NO. 77 VOL. 95
Destructive Silence S
uicide is the third-leading cause
of death among young adults 18-
24 years old. One in five undergraduate students seriously consider committing suicide. Central Michigan University has lost current and former students to suicide this semester, calling attention to a serious problem. While the university provides resources to get help, a collaborative effort is needed to fight the mental disorder.
Faculty, RAs answer call to help students with depression By Sean Bradley Staff Reporter
Arin Bisaro | Staff Photographer College students often find themselves feeling devastated, alone, hopeless and without options. It is common for students with depression to feel that suicide is the only way out.
Recognizing cries for help from students with symptoms of depression in the residence halls isn’t part of Josh Finch’s stated job description, but it’s a priority. A former Trout Hall resident assistant, Finch has in the last few years helped to identify and offer therapy avenues for students dealing with mental health, depression and self-worth issues. He’s not alone. Many other RAs around campus are making a concerted effort to get students help before they are consumed by depression or take their own lives in an act of desperation. “We might see something with cutting behaviors or suicide issues,” Finch said. “It might be something as simple as stress or a roommate situation.” As a hall counsel adviser in Troutman and Carey halls, the Midland senior has been a sounding board for students in need. Take for example, a freshman who came to Finch seeking help after an orientation seminar in the fall of 2011. “There were people in her past she had lost, and she felt responsible for it, and had a few self-esteem and self-worth issues,” Finch said, “On the outside, you’d never know something was wrong. Not many people knew this was a problem she was going through.”
After several conversations with the student, Finch suggested she make a Counseling Center appointment. He walked her over to make her feel more at ease with her decision to get help. “By no means was it a quick fix,” he said, “but it’s something throughout the year, through our conversations, I could see it getting better.” The Counseling Center, located in Foust Hall, has logged an increase of 35 students seeking “urgent or same day” counseling sessions from fall 2011 to fall 2013, according to data provided by Counseling Center Director Ross Rapaport. In Fall 2011, 134 students received urgent or same day counseling sessions. Two years later, that number jumped to 169 students in the fall of 2013. However, the number of total people counseled fluctuated during this period. In 2011, 548 students received counseling services. That number declined to 514 in 2012, before rising again in 2013, with 540 students counseled. All together, more than 1,000 students received counseling last year, with 293 students receiving urgent, same-day services. There are no totals tallied for the 2013-14 academic year, as the spring semester is still in session. Rapaport said urgent, same-day appointments are increasing even w counseling | 2A
Removing the armor: Zimmerman suicide shows struggle to ask for help By Malachi Barrett Sports Editor
It’s incredible the difference one question can make. Justin Zimmerman was unable to ask for help, and ultimately it cost him his life. “We had a safety net, that’s what really hurts in this situation,” said his father, Calvin Zimmerman. “For whatever reason, he didn’t have it in him to verbalize whatever was going on inside him. He didn’t have that ability to ask us.” Justin was raised in a strict, but tightly-knit Christian family, the second oldest child with three brothers and a sister. He had the ideal midwest upbringing, growing up in Hudsonville with 12 acres of woods, ample space to play paintball and enjoy the outdoors with his friends and family. It was in those woods that the former Central Michigan University student took his life. Statistics from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention state that 75 percent of all suicides give
some warning of their intentions. The blow is heavier for family and friends of the other 25 percent who kill themselves with no signs of being at risk for suicidal behavior. Justin was a well-known figure in Hudsonville, and had a close relationship with his family, who could be described as supportive and tirelessly concerned for one another. Despite a strong network of friends and loved ones, Justin never told anyone the pain he was dealing with. He was described by many at his funeral as having an electric personality, always the first to crack a joke and owner of an infectious laugh. In many ways, he was a personification of the idea that “it could happen to anybody.” He fit a familiar mold with thousands of other students, a dedicated young adult from rural Michigan, who shouldered the responsibility of meeting his own expectations and those of his family and friends. “It’s so easy to hide behind our cars, phones and our money, but we are all broken – every one of us,” said his older brother, Joshua, at the
funeral. “Swallow your pride, tell someone how you truly care about them, tell someone you love them. It would do our family proud if we could see a community change and see people love each other.”
The long fall
Graduating high school with a 4.02 GPA and nine college credits, he was on the path for a prosperous future. In 2009, he chose to attend Central Michigan University to stay close to home and begin his career as a walkon for the wrestling team. Justin came from a wrestling family; his father raised four highly-successful athletes. Justin was a two-time state placer and set multiple season and career records at Hudsonville High School. He met Tyler Keselring, now a junior on the CMU wrestling team, on the mat in the state championships and beat him in the regular season. “I always remember him working hard,” Keselring said. “I remember him on my recruiting trip, everyone w zimmerman | 5A
Photo Illustration by Samantha Madar | Photo Editor A letter sent to Justin Zimmerman by his former coach Bruce Kunzi after graduating high school. Zimmerman took his own life without warning in March.
Health Services offers sun lamp therapy to reduce depression symptoms By Mark Johnson Senior Reporter
Long, cold and gloomy Michigan winters are known to cause depression symptoms in students, and this year’s blasts of sub-zero temperatures have left many feeling down. To help the Central Michigan University community maintain a positive mental outlook, University Health Services offers Day Light Therapy treatments to combat the negative side effects of seasonal affective disorder.
The treatment offers a 30-minute exposure to a room of sun lamps, called a high-intensity light box, which is located in the campus health facility. The treatment is available to students, faculty and staff for $2 per 30-minute session. The treatment does not require a doctor’s order or prescription, although doctors or counselors might refer their patients to the therapy. “It really has a positive effect on the chemicals in the brain and helps patients feel better,” said Lori
Wangberg, the health educator for University Health Services. “It can help to increase energy, make them feel better about themselves and maybe not so hopeless.” CMU’s light box was purchased in late 2009 for less than $300, Wangberg said. To administer the treatment, patients sit in front of the light box during the half-hour session where the compact fluorescent bulb within the light box releases bright light in three different adjustable beams with varying
degrees of heat. The light box produces 10,000 lux, a standard unit of light flow, which is approximately equal to the amount of lux produced by the sun on a clear day, according to design and treatment specifications offered by University Health Services. The treatment is meant to mimic sunnier conditions to give students the benefits of being outside when the weather is warm and inviting. Treatments take place in a small room with the light box perched
on a table. Once inside, a patient can sit in a chair directly in front of the box. Patients can relax, listen to music, eat or even do homework during their treatment. Wangberg said the benefits of a single session don’t kick in until later in the day, which is why it is recommended students receive it in the morning. Wangberg also recommended patients receive the treatment daily. “Some say they felt better about w sun lamp | 2A