Why students should have mental health days | Hailey Hardcastle

Transcriber: Leslie Gauthier Reviewer: Joanna Pietrulewicz

翻译人员: Sabrina Kwan 校对人员: Yolanda Zhang

When I was a kid,

在我小的时候，

my mom and I made this deal.

我跟母亲做了一个交易。

I was allowed to take three mental health rest days every semester

只要我在学校一直表现好，

每个学期就可以 休三天的“精神健康假”。

as long as I continued to do well in school.

This was because I started my mental health journey

这是因为，我在六岁的时候

when I was only six years old.

就开始了我的精神健康之旅。

I was always what my grade-school teachers would call "a worrier,"

我一直是小学老师口中的“麻烦精”，

but later on we found out that I have trauma-induced anxiety

可是后来，大家发现 我患有创伤性焦虑

and clinical depression.

和临床抑郁症。

This made growing up pretty hard.

这让我的成长之路困难重重。

I was worried about a lot of things that other kids weren't,

我时常担心很多其他孩子 不会担心的事情，

and school got really overwhelming sometimes.

学校的功课有时也很难应付。

This resulted in a lot of breakdowns,

这导致我经常感到精神崩溃，

panic attacks --

恐慌症发作——

sometimes I was super productive,

有时候我的工作效率很高，

and other days I couldn't get anything done.

有时候，我却什么都做不好。

This was all happening during a time

那段时间，

when mental health wasn't being talked about

人们对精神健康，尤其是

青少年精神健康的探讨

as much as it is now,

especially youth mental health.

远不如现在这样普遍。

Some semesters I used all of those rest days to the fullest.

有的学期，我充分利用了所有的假期；

Others, I didn't need any at all.

而有的学期，我完全不需要休假。

But the fact that they were always an option

正是因为我能够选择是否休假，

is what kept me a happy, healthy and successful student.

才成为了一个快乐、健康、 学业有成的学生。

Now I'm using those skills that I learned as a kid

我现在在用小时候学到的技能

to help other students with mental health challenges.

来帮助其他学生 应对他们的精神健康挑战。

I'm here today to offer you some insight into the world of teenage mental health:

我今天想介绍一些 有关青少年精神健康的知识：

what's going on, how did we get here and what can we do?

发生了什么？怎么发生的？ 我们可以做什么？

But first you need to understand

可是首先，我们要了解，

that while not everyone has a diagnosed mental illness like I do,

尽管并不是每个人都像我一样 被诊断出患有精神疾病，

absolutely everyone --

可是每个人

all of you have mental health.

都需要关心精神健康问题。

All of us have a brain that needs to be cared for

就像维持身体健康一样，

in similar ways that we care for our physical well-being.

每个人也有一个需要精心呵护的大脑。

Our head and our body are connected by much more than just our neck after all.

毕竟，我们的头和身体的联系 并不仅仅是脖子。

Mental illness even manifests itself in some physical ways,

精神疾病也可以体现在生理上，

such as nausea, headaches, fatigue and shortness of breath.

如恶心、头痛、疲劳和呼吸急促。

So since mental health affects all of us,

既然精神健康会影响所有人，

shouldn't we be coming up with solutions that are accessible to all of us?

我们应该想出对大家 都适用的解决方法，对吗？

That brings me to my second part of my story.

这就引出了我故事的第二部分。

When I was in high school

在高中的时候，

I had gotten pretty good at managing my own mental health.

我已经能够很好的管理 自己的精神健康。

我成绩不错，

I was a successful student,

and I was president of the Oregon Association of Student Councils.

同时也是俄勒冈州学生会的主席。

But it was around this time that I began to realize

但这时，我开始意识到，

mental health was much a bigger problem than just for me personally.

其他人也在受到精神健康问题的困扰。

Unfortunately, my hometown was touched by multiple suicides

在我高中的第一年里，

during my first year in high school.

我的家乡不幸发生了多次自杀事件。

I saw those tragedies shake our entire community,

我看到整个社区的人 都被那些悲剧深深的触动了。

and as the president of a statewide group,

作为一个全州性组织的主席，

I began hearing more and more stories

我也开始从其他学生那里

听到了越来越多类似的悲剧。

from students where this had also happened in their town.

So in 2018 at our annual summer camp,

因此，在 2018 年的年度夏令营，

we held a forum with about 100 high school students

我们与 100 名高中学生 举行了座谈会。

to discuss teenage mental health.

共同讨论青少年精神健康的话题。

What could we do?

我们应该怎么做？

We approached this conversation with an enormous amount of empathy

我们怀着极大的同理心和坦诚

and honesty,

进行了交流，

and the results were astounding.

并获得了令人惊喜的结果。

What struck me the most

最令我印象深刻的就是，

was that every single one of my peers had a story

每个同龄人——不管他们来自

about a mental health crisis in their school,

俄勒冈州东边的小镇 还是波特兰的市中心，

no matter if they were from a tiny town in eastern Oregon

都有一个

or the very heart of Portland.

关于校园精神健康危机的故事。

This was happening everywhere.

这样的情况无处不在。

We even did some research,

我们甚至着手做了些研究。

and we found out that suicide is the second leading cause of death

我们发现，自杀是俄勒冈州 10 岁到 24 岁青年

for youth ages 10 to 24 in Oregon.

的第二大死因。

The second leading cause.

第二大死因。

We knew we had to do something.

我们不能再袖手旁观了。

So over the next few months,

于是在接下来的几个月，

we made a committee called Students for a Healthy Oregon,

我们成立了一个叫做 “学生支持健康俄勒冈”的委员会，

and we set out to end the stigma against mental health.

致力于停止将精神健康污名化。

We also wanted to prioritize mental health in schools.

我们还希望在学校 提升精神健康的重要性。

With the help of some lobbyists and a few mental health professionals,

在一些游说者 和精神健康专家的帮助下，

we put forth House Bill 2191.

我们提出了众议院 2191 号法案。

This bill allows students to take mental health days off from school

这项法案让学生能够 以精神健康为由请假，

the same way you would a physical health day.

跟请普通病假差不多。

Because oftentimes that day off

因为通常情况下，休一天假

is the difference between feeling a whole lot better

就能决定你会感觉更好，

and a whole lot worse --

还是更糟——

就像我小时候我妈妈允许我休的假。

kind of like those days my mom gave me when I was younger.

So over the next few months,

在接下来的几个月，

we lobbied and researched and campaigned for our bill,

我们为该法案进行游说、研究和竞选。

and in June of 2019 it was finally signed into law.

在 2019 年 6 月， 它终于被签署成为法律。

(Applause and cheers)

（掌声）

This was a groundbreaking moment for Oregon students.

对于俄勒冈州的学生来说， 这是一个突破性的时刻。

Here's an example of how this is playing out now.

效果如何呢？我们来看一个例子。

Let's say a student is having a really hard month.

比如说，有一些学生 这个月过得很糟糕。

They're overwhelmed, overworked,

他们课业繁重，疲劳过度，

they're falling behind in school, and they know they need help.

跟不上课程进度， 他们感觉自己需要帮助。

Maybe they've never talked about mental health with their parents before,

他们可能从来没有 跟父母探讨过精神健康的话题，

但是现在有一条法律 可以帮助他们发起这场对话。

but now they have a law on their side to help initiate that conversation.

The parent still needs to be the one to call the school and excuse the absence,

家长依然需要给学校打电话， 解释一下请假的原因，

所以并不是说孩子们可以随意旷课。

so it's not like it's a free pass for the kids,

但最重要的是，

but most importantly,

now that school has that absence recorded as a mental health day,

既然学校把缺席记录为精神健康假，

so they can keep track

他们就可以追踪

of just how many students take how many mental health days.

有多少学生请了多少天精神健康假。

If a student takes too many,

如果一位学生请了太多次，

they'll be referred to the school counselor for a check-in.

就会被建议与学校辅导员进行咨询。

This is important because we can catch students who are struggling

这很重要，因为我们可以及时

找到并帮助那些陷入困境的学生。

before it's too late.

One of the main things we heard at that forum in 2018

在 2018 年的论坛上， 我们听到的最主要的事情之一就是，

is that oftentimes stepping forward and getting help is the hardest step.

最困难的环节通常就是 向前一步，寻求帮助。

We're hoping that this law can help with that.

我们希望这项法律能帮助改善现状，

This not only will start teaching kids young how to take care of themselves

不仅能教会孩子如何照顾自己，

and practice self-care and stress management,

实践自理和压力管理，

but it could also literally save lives.

也可以拯救生命。

Now students from multiple other states are also trying to pass these laws.

目前，其他州的学生 也在试图通过类似的法律。

I'm currently working with students in both California and Colorado

我正在跟加州和 科罗拉州学生一起合作

to do the same,

推动这些法案。

because we believe that students everywhere

因为我们相信， 任何地方的学生

都应该有机会 改善自己的精神健康状况。

deserve a chance to feel better.

Aside from all the practical reasons and technicalities,

除了实际原因和技术细节以外，

House Bill 2191 is really special because of the core concept behind it:

众议院法案 2191 的特别之处 更在于它背后的核心理念：

that physical and mental health are equal and should be treated as such.

身体健康和精神健康是平等的， 应该得到平等的对待。

In fact, they're connected.

事实上，它们有着密切的联系。

Take health care for example.

以医疗保健为例，

Think about CPR.

比如心肺复苏。

If you were put in a situation where you had to administer CPR,

如果你需要实施心肺复苏的话，

would you know at least a little bit of what to do?

你知道具体怎么操作吗？

Think to yourself --

先想想看——

most likely yes because CPR trainings are offered in most schools, workplaces

答案很可能是肯定的，因为大多数 学校和工作场所都提供心肺复苏培训，

and even online.

网上也能找到相关教程，

We even have songs that go with it.

甚至还有关于心肺复苏的歌曲。

But how about mental health care?

但是精神健康呢？

I know I was trained in CPR in my seventh-grade health class.

我在七年级的健康课上 受过心肺复苏训练。

What if I was trained in seventh grade how to manage my mental health

如果我在七年级也学过 如何管理精神健康，

or how to respond to a mental health crisis?

或者如何应对精神健康危机呢？

I'd love to see a world where each of us has a toolkit of skills

我希望世界上的 每个人都可以拥有一些技能

to help a friend, coworker, family member

来帮助正在经历精神健康危机的

or even stranger going through a mental health crisis.

朋友、同事、家人或陌生人。

And these resources should be especially available in schools

学校里更应该提供这类资源，

because that's where students are struggling the most.

因为这是学生们最容易出现问题的地方。

The other concept that I sincerely hope you take with you today

我衷心希望大家今天 能够记住的另外一点是，

is that it is always OK to not be OK,

出现精神问题很正常，

and it is always OK to take a break.

偶尔需要休息一下也很正常。

It doesn't have to be a whole day;

不必花上一整天，

sometimes that's not realistic.

有时候这也不现实。

But it can be a few moments here and there to check in with yourself.

但是可以随时随地 花一些时间自我审视。

Think of life like a race ...

把生活想象成一场比赛，

like a long-distance race.

一场长跑。

If you sprint in the very beginning you're going to get burnt out.

如果你一开始就冲刺， 很快就会筋疲力尽，

You may even hurt yourself from pushing too hard.

甚至可能会因为用力过猛 而把自己推向崩溃的边缘。

But if you pace yourself,

可是如果你试着调整一下速度，

if you take it slow, sometimes intentionally,

有时候故意放慢脚步，

and you push yourself other times,

张弛有度，

you are sure to be way more successful.

你一定会更成功。

So please,

所以，

look after each other,

请互相照顾，

look after the kids and teens in your life

照顾你身边的孩子和青少年，

especially the ones that look like they have it all together.

尤其是那些看起来状态很好的人。

Mental health challenges are not going away,

精神健康的挑战不会消失，

but as a society,

但作为一个社会，

we can learn how to manage them by looking after one another.

我们可以通过互相照顾 来学习如何管理这些挑战。

And look after yourself, too.

也别忘了把自己照顾好。

As my mom would say,

就像我妈妈经常说的：

"Once in a while, take a break."

“隔段时间，休息一下。”

Thank you.

谢谢。

(Applause)

（掌声）