Thread by @taracdennehy

@DisInGradSchool I’m going to respond as a postdoc and say that I’ve witnessed this go multiple ways.

I have (as an instructor) reached out privately to a few undergrad students in my classes. The overwhelming response was gratitude someone cared… [Large R1.]

@DisInGradSchool In one instance, I called the counseling center (on my cell phone, with the student sitting with me, with their full consent/at their request) and said they needed to be seen. The counseling center was notorious for extremely long wait times and my call bumped them up the queue.

@DisInGradSchool That said, as a *trainee,* I have witnessed faculty members blame students’ responses to actual structural issues/inequity/mistreatment on trainees’ mental health. And this just makes me sick and furious.

@DisInGradSchool And not all personal distress *is* mental health, per se.

Students/trainees may be physically ill. Or having appropriate responses to real life stressors.

Anti-depressants did *nothing* for my undiagnosed autoimmune disease 🙃. So being told to seek help was unhelpful.

@DisInGradSchool That said, when I have approached students, I’ve started with gently sounding them out. And letting them talk (or not).
I think one question that can be—carefully—asked is if they need support. Because you never know what’s up. Maybe they’re actually food insecure. Or parenting…

@DisInGradSchool Something I want to add: the “or not” is crucial. I have seen professors interrogate students/trainees who *do not* want to talk about what is going on, using their power/authority to force responses. This *causes* distress and makes them feel violated. This is abusive.

@DisInGradSchool If you are genuinely concerned about the safety of a student or others, every university I’ve been at has mechanisms to report these concerns. [My PhD institution had a flow chart!]

Professors are not their students’ parents, social workers, or therapists.