Be Happy by Mackenzie

Be Happy by Mackenzie - September 2019 Scholarship Essay

It’s no secret that in recent years there has been a steady incline in teens dealing with mental illness. One in five teens is diagnosed each year with a mental illness whether it is depression, anxiety, or bipolar disorder. This doesn’t account for the number of teens that go undiagnosed each year.
If I could create any extracurricular activity for high schoolers, I would create a mental health club called “Be Healthy”. The club would have volunteer therapists and counselors from the community willing to talk to students about their mental health, dealing with everyday peer pressures, bullying, and stress. While the main target would be students battling with mental health, it will also help students to have a safe place to talk. I’d hope members of the student body would attend a few meetings so that they could gain knowledge about mental illnesses, learn to recognize signs so they can get help for themselves or their friends, and encourage people they know to seek help.
I know that this club could never cure people of their mental illness, but I hope this club could make a difference in the way people view mental illness and could give a safe space to start a conversation about it.