This message is sent on behalf of URI’s Mental Health First Aid program.

We are excited to announce the beginning of a regular email series focusing on the promotion and protection of mental health at URI. Amid the ever-changing academic and cultural landscape, mental health is especially important, and being aware of the available resources is vital.

Through this series, we will provide information and resources about the ways we can all strengthen our mental well-being. Each message will feature a “Mindful Minute,” a column explaining simple ways you can be more present amid stress and uncertainty. This academic year puts us in uncharted waters. As we work to remain patient and flexible with our personal and professional lives, and as we acknowledge the significant physical, psychological, academic and economic effects that have been wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing action to bring about racial and social justice for all, we must pause.

We pause because:

• Approximately 41% of college/university students felt so depressed that it was difficult to function, and 62% felt overwhelming anxiety, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI, 2019).
• Approximately 10% of full-time college students ages 18 through 22 experienced serious thoughts of suicide within the past year, and 1.3% of college students made a suicide attempt, according to the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA, 2019).
• Students of color experience greater unmet mental health needs, are less likely to be diagnosed, and less likely to seek mental health services due to stigma and discrimination (NAMI, 2019).
• Graduate students are especially at risk, as this population has even higher rates of suicide than undergraduate students (Evans et al., 2018).

Many of URI’s Mental Health Virtual events are quickly approaching in the month of October (Fresh Check Day, URI’s Be5K for Mental Health Awareness and Suicide Prevention). We hope that you will use these emails as a call for reflection and for action.

Stay safe and healthy, and remember to take care of each other.

URI counseling and health resources

• Counseling Center
• Couple and Family Therapy Clinic
• Psychological Consultation Center 
• URI Health Services

Additional campus resources

• Disability Services for Students
• Gender and Sexuality Center
• Multicultural Student Services Center
• Rhody Outpost (Food Pantry)
• Veterans Affairs and Military Programs
• Violence Prevention and Advocacy Services

Mindful Moment: Mindfulness is the practice of being fully present and engaged in the current moment. It is about minimizing distractions and committing conscious effort to increase nonjudgmental awareness of ourselves and others. To join a regular mindfulness practice at URI, email MINDFUL@listserv.uri.edu to get involved.

This message is brought to you by URI’s Division of Student Affairs, URI’s Mental Health First Aid program, and a Garrett Lee Smith SAMSHA grant.