By Daniella Bagaya
Students at Uganda Christian University have been urged to speak about mental health struggles and look out for and support those who might be struggling with different challenges. This was at an event organised by the Fortress Within club for UCU students.
The programme which took place in the evening of June 12th ran under the theme “Unmasked Collective: A Mental Health and Creative Expression Experience”.
Mr. Derrick Miganda, the guest speaker addressed the students and talked about addiction being a symptom of an unmet need. Speaking from his experience of beating addiction in his university days, Miganda talked about how something he once did as a hobby quickly turned sinister.
“I thought using alcohol and drugs, I was having fun, until someone came to me and said, ‘By the way, I’ve never seen you sober.’”
He pointed out how his lack of self-confidence made him feel that he needed substances to socialise with others. He urged young people to cope with mental turmoil in healthy ways such as building self-esteem and seeking out mental health professionals.
Aaron Rachkara the Vice President of the club emphasised that stigma poses a threat to people who struggle with addiction: “Addiction thrives best in isolation.”
Rachkara discussed the need to remove stereotypes such as criminal lifestyle from anti-drug use campaigns, as they stimulate shame that deters the people who need the most help from seeking it.
Sharing the students that there is help, the acting Director of Student Affairs (DOSA), Ms Enid Mugarura urged them to be the keepers of their peers who may not be in attendance, over matters such as substance abuse, addiction, mental health crises, and neurodivergent students who may be struggling to adjust to systems within the university.
“The beauty is that we have a whole counseling hub full of counsellors, psychologists; they’re all there. For you your job is, hold their hand, walk with that individual,” she said.
Other speakers like Ms. Josephine Marete, the club’s patron, and Martin Amanya, a counseling psychologist and member of Uganda Counsellor’s Association encouraged the attendees to be supportive of those they recognize as struggling.
The event was done in collaboration with Fortress Care Uganda Limited, Nation Media Group (NMG) Uganda, and the university as well as, Uganda Counsellors Association.
It also served as a celebration of the launch of NMG’s “Tufaayo” mental health campaign.
The event also had moments of socialising between the organisers and students over a session of painting. A musical performance was given by Samuel Asianut aka Summit EV a gospel artiste in his second year at UCU School of Law.
Attendees at the event participating in the pain-by-number activity set up at the event. Taken by Atwiine Barinaba
