Sally Weale’s article (Universities must treat students better, says UK father whose son killed himself, 9 August) highlights the painful reality of parents whose children are suffering with serious mental health problems at university. I have worked as a supervisor for university mental health advisers for the last five years. I regularly hear of issues of suicidal thoughts, anxiety, depression and isolation. I believe nothing will change until we get beneath these symptoms to the root causes of this problem.
Why are mental health problems so prevalent? Perhaps we should question a culture that so values competition and individual prowess, ignoring the pressures that these bring; a culture where our self-esteem is so tied up with how well we perform and how we look.
