After tragedy struck WKU 10 years ago when a student died by suicide, professor of social work Jay Gabbard formed a mental health support group for students on campus – the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Recovery Support Group.
Gabbard said he initially became interested in helping others after receiving a diagnosis of bipolar and panic disorder. When he attended a local mental health support group, he decided that the support group on campus could be modeled after it.
“I’ve always had a desire to help others who are going through the same struggles, particularly college-aged students, because that’s when my illness first started to appear,” Gabbard said.
Currently sitting as Bowling Green NAMI’s vice president and the support group’s facilitator, Gabbard said the group is led by two Bowling Green NAMI facilitators who have also struggled with mental health themselves.
The confidential group meets twice monthly, is free to all students and offers pizza and drinks to attendees. Formal diagnoses are not required.
Gabbard said the group has continued to meet due to overwhelming support from the WKU Counseling Center. He said therapists will recommend the support group to students they feel could additionally benefit from it.
While students at the counseling center can receive more formal support from a therapist, Gabbard said the support group can show students they are not alone by discussing mental health issues with their peers.
“The students in the support group will form relationships with other support group members so that way when they are feeling depressed or anxious or they need support, they have somebody to call who is in the same boat and understands,” Gabbard said.
Gabbard also emphasized the importance of combating the stigma surrounding mental health and wants students to understand mental health conditions shouldn’t define them.
“There’s hope for everybody,” Gabbard said. “We’ll never give up hope to help those who have mental health issues. Your condition doesn’t have to define your life.”
The support group’s next meeting is on Feb. 26 at 6 p.m. in Academic Complex Room 203.
News Reporter Kaylee Hawkins can be reached at kaylee.hawkins407@topper.wku.edu.