Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
Categories
UFS News Media Release Research
Years
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Months
January February March April May June July August September October November December
Previous Archive
20 October 2020 | Story Mienke van Zyl | Photo Supplied
Mienke van Zyl believes that even in darkness there is light, and nobody can take that light away from you.
I struggled with depression and anxiety. I felt hopeless, unworthy of love, worthless, numb, and like a complete disappointment to myself and others. In my case, the medications prescribed to me by a psychiatrist worked against each other and made me completely lose control over my thought processes (I had to take 11 pills a day to ‘survive’). 

My suicidal thoughts and the need for self-harm increased by the day. I took nearly 50 pills to end my life, and by the time I was brought to the hospital, they could not do much for me. I was lucky enough to have survived. On getting a second chance after my last suicide attempt, I struggled to find my identity. Feeling numb for such a long time, I struggled to identify what and how I was feeling and why.

Overcoming

I went to therapy and had an amazing psychologist who gave me tools to work through my trauma; this helped me realise that I am worthy of living a full life. I attended a self-esteem programme compiled by UFS Student Counselling and Development (SCD) to improve my low self-esteem. 

After feeling numb for such a long time and not knowing what emotions were anymore, I had to learn to sit with my emotions and identify what I was feeling ( happy, angry, sad, etc.) and what caused me to feel this way. 

Being saved by God's amazing grace after my last suicide attempt, it was a battle to recover completely, but I no longer felt anxious, depressed, or suicidal. I was finally ready to start fighting for my well-being. Finding my identity took me a lot longer than I thought it would. I have lost so much of myself during my dark times that I completely forgot who I was.  I reminded myself that I have life and that I am a brave fighter. These small reminders helped shape me into the person I am proud to be today.

Hope

Hope for me is seeing the light at the end of the dark tunnel.  Hope is a reminder that I can get through even the toughest of times because I am strong enough to face any challenges that come my way.

News Archive

UFS academic discusses Dutch, Afrikaans and African languages
2006-05-22

During the colloquium presented in Belgium by the Province Antwerp were from the left Prof Pol Cuvelier (University of Antwerp), Prof Theo du Plessis (Director: Unit for Language Management at the UFS), Mr Ludo Helsen (Permanent Deputy: Province of Antwerp) and Mr Jean-Pierre Rondas (Flemish radio journalist).

________________________________________________

UFS academic discusses Dutch, Afrikaans and African languages at international conference

Prof Theo du Plessis, Director of the Unit for Language Management at the University of the Free State (UFS), was the main speaker at a colloquium titled “Routes:  Where to now? - Een traject van het Nederlands naar het Afrikaans en de Afrikatalen”, which was recently presented by the Province Antwerp in Belgium.

 The aim of the colloquium was to discuss the future cooperation in the field of language between the Province Antwerp and South Africa. 

 The Province Antwerp is already involved with projects in South Africa.  One of these projects is the Multilingual Information Development Programme (MIDP), a partnership project between the UFS and the Free State Province that is mainly funded by the Province Antwerp. 

 The project has been running since 1999 and was recently in the news with the presentation of a symposium on multilingualism and exclusion on the Main Campus of the UFS.  It is hoped that the Routes colloquium will indicate new stages on which can be added to the already successful cooperation in the area of language.

 Prof Du Plessis’s presentation titled “Nederlands, Afrikaans en die Afrikatale – kan samewerking slaag? Die geval MIDP in die Vrystaat”, investigated the successes that have been made with the MIDP.  He discussed two possible approaches to cooperation in the areas of language, that of a sentimentalistic  approach against an instrumentalistic approach. 

Cooperation in the first approach makes language the aim.  In the second approach language is used as a means to a greater aim.  According to Prof du Plessis the first approach is driven by a romantisised idea about the relation between the Flemish and Afrikaans speaking people, which may unfortunately polarise the position of Afrikaans in South Africa even further.

 He argues that, given the time that we are in, the second approach will deliver more constructive results as language can among others be used for to further  democracy in South Africa.   This can happen by cooperation in the institutionalising of multilingualism in our society.  The more languages are used in education, law and government administration, the more we can be assured a successful democracy.

 The Routes colloquium was facilitated by the well-known Flemish radio journalist, Jean-Pierre Rondas. About twenty South African and Flemish language specialists took part in the colloquium.  Dr Fritz Kok, outgoing chief executive officer of the ATKV took part in the opening ceremony and Dr Neville Alexander from the University of Cape Town and well-known activist for multilingualism in South Africa was also one of the main speakers.

We use cookies to make interactions with our websites and services easy and meaningful. To better understand how they are used, read more about the UFS cookie policy. By continuing to use this site you are giving us your consent to do this.

Accept