After interviewing five people on campus I realized that the University of Delaware is deficient in their attempt to aid others in their fight against mental health. One interviewee talked about UD’s long wait times to visit a therapist and how Student Health Services are usually wrong in their diagnosis, thus providing very little help. The interviewee substantiated this statement by saying,  “I went to Student Health with obvious signs of mono and they did not even test me for it and sent me home. I went back days later with worsened symptoms and they finally tested me and I was positive for mono.”

Another interviewee talked about the UD counseling center’s inability to handle the volume of students who seek help. They talked about a previous semester when students were trying to schedule appointments to see a therapist but they were turned away because the schedules were already booked. Incidents like that are dangerous because students who seek help may be in a precarious state and if they are turned away then that just adds to their emotional darkness. There should be enough staff available on campus so that no one is turned away when they need help and the interviewee could not fathom why this is not a priority for the University. 

On the other hand, there are places around campus that students use to help their mental and physical health and they speak highly of the effectiveness of those places. When asked the question “How do you improve your physical health and does the University allow you to do so?”,  many students responded with “exercising at the Lil Bob gym.” They all liked how the gym has three floors so there is usually an area where they can exercise, with the only downside being that is far from some of the dorms. However, there is another gym in Harrington where students can go to work out closer to their dorms. Finally, the turf behind Perkins Student Center allows students to relieve stress by playing sports, listening to music together, and interacting with one another. 

All in all, the interviews gave insight into the University of Delaware’s struggle with aiding in students’ mental health and medical problems, but there are many opportunities for students to improve their physical health.