Questions for discussion:

1. Should we consider lived experience as a form of evidence? If so, why? If not, why not?

2. Why have we come to value other forms of knowledge more than our own experience?

3. What is the relationship between power and what we consider trustworthy/evidence?

4. What does the language we use to describe and re-present a phenomenon such as distress or mental illness tell us about our interpretations/understandings of the phenomenon?

Questions for discussion

1. What is a transition? Is it a short (2-3 week) period as one enters a university? Or is it a more personal journey that spans the many transition points into, within, and out of higher education?

Reflection

Reflect on your own experience of transition to higher education. What helped you in this transition? What challenges did you experience? What would have helped you overcome these challenges? How might the transition experiences of students with mental health difficulties differ? Drawing on the experiences of the students in this book, how might these students be better supported in the transition to higher education?

Questions for discussion

1. What are the opportunities and implications of diagnosis for students with mental health difficulties?

2. Is mental health/mental illness a disability?

3. What, from the accounts of students shared in this book, were the most helpful aspects of disability support? In what way do you think these were helpful?

4. “Fitness to Practise means having the necessary skills, knowledge, health, personal resilience and ongoing appropriate conduct and dispositions to undertake and complete, safely and effectively, a programme that includes elements of professional practice, experiential learning or clinical work.”

• Only professionals who meet Fitness to Practise requirements should be allowed to work in health and social care professions – Discuss.

Questions for discussion

1. What are the day-to-day challenges experienced by university students with mental health difficulties? How might these be overcome – by universities; student support services; the student themselves?

2. What is perfectionism? Are students with mental health difficulties more likely to experience perfectionism? Or is perfectionism more likely to lead to distress?

Activity

1. Develop a series of recommendations for the inclusion and support of students with mental health difficulties in higher education – for Government; for Universities; for student support services; for lecturers/tutors; for students.

2. Identify three ways in which the student experiences and learning from the book will influence your current/future practice.