Mentoring and networks are crucial for student mental health | Letters

It is very important to emphasise the importance of prevention, writes former mentor Constantine Louis. And get rid of freshers' week, writes Jackie Sherman

You rightly bring to your readers' attention the suffering of students with mental health problems (Report, 16 September). It is outrageous that students have to wait between two and three months for help - and tragically, in some cases, it is too late.

I am 78, and up until recently I was a specialist mentor, working with university students. During that time, I came across an alarmingly high number of young people who were self-harming and often contemplated suicide. Initially, students were able to receive instantaneous help, as our counsellors had a walk-in policy and I was always available to see my mentees in a pod within the university library. Our main focus was to enable these young men and women, facing suicidal thoughts, to develop coping strategies and above all to learn to respect themselves.

Continue reading...