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My roller-coaster ride of mental health

29 October 2020 | Story Thokozane Ngcongwane | Photo Supplied

Thokozane_web read more — Thokozane Ngcongwane recommends that students and staff should actively seek help for their mental-health challenges.

My name is Thokozane Ngcongwane. I coordinate the UFSS1504 module in the Centre for Teaching and Learning (CTL). The journey of struggles and triumphs against mental illness has often peppered my life more than I thought. Having grown up in rural Free State, it was hard for my parents, as well as those around me, to believe that things such as mental illness exist – let alone their own son!

I grew up with attention-deficit / hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and was admitted numerous times as the illness was misdiagnosed and untreated. This laid the foundation for a childhood filled with amazing feats of energetic activity, but also had the downside of being misunderstood, or ill-treated due to this illness. Before I knew about this illness, I believed that because of my height (I have been given the names ‘Napoleon’ and ‘Goliath’ by various people, throughout) and stature. I was a prime target for bullying.

Fast forward to university, and with the world as my oyster, I believed I would do well, graduate, and become the scientist I have always dreamed of becoming. Nothing could prepare me for the roller-coaster ride that, even to this day, has taught me highly valuable life lessons that I would never have received anywhere else. I started a degree in Chemistry (Extended) and was doing well in the first year. I was even fortunate enough to be selected for the F1 Leadership for Change exchange programme that took me to the USA. That was an incredible experience. Fast forward to my third year, and things took a turn for the worse.

By 2013, I started getting panic and anxiety attacks, the origin of which was quite unknown to me at the time. I thought that I was starting to go insane and this caused a huge drop in my academics, as well as distorting my overall view on life. I started refusing to see friends and family and even shunned myself from engaging in academics. This was the start of my battles and little prepared me for the fight ahead. I took a trip outside of my surroundings and became aware of how the people I avoided cared for me, and the result was that I overcame anxiety for that period. Family, friends, and lecturers were supportive and encouraged me to do my best amid this unknown period in my life. My academics improved and I became social again.

When I thought the worst was behind me, I was diagnosed with generalised anxiety disorder (GAD). I contacted Student Counselling and Development and received professional assistance. I started feeling better again and was on my way to graduating, albeit the journey was fraught with anxious moments. My graduation was delayed due to a credit shortfall, and this threw me in the deep end once again. This time, I dealt with it better by engaging myself in my passions – sports and the outdoors. I graduated in May 2016 and secured a temporary job as a Science teacher.

I returned home to the Qwaqwa Campus, where I became an intern in CTL. My troubles reached a boiling point in 2019, and I contacted Careways on recommendation of my head of department. It is now 2020, the year of global anxieties. I have learnt that institutions such as the South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG) are available to help. Higher Health is also available to deal with issues around stigmatisation. In short, seek help and never abandon your support structures. Your mental health matters.

News Archive

UFS seals cooperation with National Institute for Higher Education

2006-03-20

At the signing of the agreement were seated from the left Prof Magda Fourie (Vice-Rector: Academic Planning at the UFS) and Dr Pearl Nkosi (Head: Academic Planning at the NIHE). Standing from the left were Dr Kopano Taole (acting head of the NIHE) and Mr Vernon Collett (Registrar: Academic Student Services at the UFS).
Photo: Stephen Collett

UFS seals cooperation with National Institute for Higher Education

A formal memorandum of understanding was recently signed between the University of the Free State (UFS) and the National Institute for Higher Education in the Northern Cape (NIHE).

The memorandum was signed to give both institutions a clear understanding of the way in which collaborative programmes should be implemented.

“Although the UFS has been presenting two bachelors degree courses (i.e. B Soc Sc in Human and Societal Dynamics and B Com in General Management) and the Career Preparation Programme at the NIHE since 2003, the cooperative agreement was never formalised,” explained Prof Magda Fourie, Vice-Rector: Academic Planning at the UFS, during the signing ceremony.

These academic programmes, presented by facilitators living in Kimberley and lecturers from the UFS, serve 270 students and the entry requirements of the programmes are determined by the UFS.

Prof Fourie said the UFS had a history of a relationship with the NIHE. The partnership should be seen as an example of how two institutions of higher learning can work together to serve the needs of the students in the region.

“The memorandum of understanding is part of the UFS’s commitment to and engagement with the central region. As the NIHE is currently operating in a policy vacuum, the memorandum is underpinned by certain principles aimed at providing some parameters within which the relationship is established and developed,” she said.

Dr Kopano Taole, acting head of the NIHE, added to this by saying that the understanding of where the NIHE wants to take the partnership is now reflected in the memorandum of understanding.

“The memorandum is the culmination of many years of hard work and of helping the people of the region. The continued input and guidance of the UFS is of tremendous help to us and through this we gained a greater sense of what the NIHE can grow to be,” he said.

The NIHE is a joint initiative of the BHP Billiton Development Trust (BBDT) and the Northern Cape Provincial Government and was established in June 2004. The National Plan for Higher Eduation (NPHE 2001) proposed the establishment of the NIHE in the Northern Cape to serve as the administrative and governance hub for ensuring the coherent provision of higher education through programme collaboration between the higher education institutions operating in the Northern Cape.

Media release
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Media Representative
Tel: (051) 401-2584
Cell: 083 645 2454
E-mail: loaderl.stg@mail.uovs.ac.za
20 March 2006

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