‘You Are Not Alone’ mental health presentation offered at Coastal Bend College

Sean Campbell shares his personal experiences in coping with mental health issues; his adversities of living with a father with bipolar disorder and alcoholism; and the strategies he has developed to maintain positive mental hygiene in his life, all while becoming an author, award-winning international youth advocate, and filmmaker by 22 years old.

Campbell will present “You Are Not Alone: Coping With Mental Health Issues” at Coastal Bend College in Beeville on Monday, Sept. 26, 6 p.m. in the R.W. Dirks Building, V-119 and again on Tuesday, Sept 27, 9:30 a.m. in the Gertrude R. Jones Auditorium.

In Kingsville, Campbell will present “You Are Not Alone: Coping With Mental Health Issues” at Coastal Bend College – Kingsville Camus on Monday, Sept. 26, 9:30 a.m. in the Multipurpose Room.

In Alice, Campbell will present “You Are Not Alone: Coping With Mental Health Issues” at Coastal Bend College – Alice Campus in room 215 on Monday, Sept. 26, 2 p.m.

In Pleasanton, Campbell will present “You Are Not Alone: Coping With Mental Health Issues” at Coastal Bend College – Pleasanton Campus in the foyer on Tuesday, Sept 27, 2 p.m.

By discussing his own mental illness in a genuine and honest way, Campbell combats the stigma and fear associated with mental illness, and encourages students to acknowledge and seek treatment for mental health issues. Campbell shares his successes with psychological counseling and talk therapy. He emphasizes that while he has excelled in many ways as a young adult, he still continues to cope with mental health issues, and therefore, commitment to mental hygiene, as well as psychotherapy, are necessary for Campbell to continue to achieve optimal performance.

He has various contexts of experience when it comes to talking about mental health and mental illness. His journey of open communication and full disclosure began when he was 15 years old. At that time, Campbell began seeing a therapist to talk about his feelings of depression and anxiety, as well as the trauma he was facing while growing up in a home led by an abusive father. The mental health and addiction issues facing his family were forced into the public spotlight four years later after his father’s hit and run DUI accident with a vehicle carrying a father and his four-year-old daughter made nationwide news. Once again, Campbell was faced with the task of talking about “personal” and “private” issues.

Today, Campbell is an award-winning mental health speaker and advocate, who has discussed his mental health issues with thousands of people, forming common bonds with audience members who have faced similar issues, encouraging them to accept the mental health issues facing their lives, and encouraging them to talk and seek help, just as he began doing. Today, at 21 years old, Campbell shares how everyone can approach the “scary” topic of mental health and mental illness in an honest and proactive, yet respectful and sensitive manner.

To learn more about Sean Campbell, go to http://www.ambitiontoachieve.com.

This presentation is open to the public. For more information, contact Jose Rodriguez, Coastal Bend College Student Life and Housing Coordinator, and (361) 354-2563 or jrod@coastalbend.edu.

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