“No one person can save someone else. We can’t have that ultimate responsibility for keeping someone else safe,” she said.

Weylman also offered alternatives for those contemplating suicide.

“In the short run its about finding someone to talk to...and getting through the moment safely. If the urges are more immediately drastic, you might need to find a safe place to be,” she said. “In the longer one, if someone has a chronic episode of suicidal urges, in the context of good therapy [one can] talk about where the urge comes from.”

Catherine Shapiro, the senior tutor of Leverett House, spoke to the impact that suicide can have on a community.

She stressed that people can be deeply affected by a suicide even if they did not know the person.

Shapiro encouraged those affected to talk to others about their feelings, regardless of their content or when they occur.

“It’s hard to predict what emotions will come out for you personally,” she said.

Weylman also encouraged students to take time to just process their emotions.

“Here at Harvard in particular we don’t give enough time to our feelings, our emotional life,” she said. “Attending to one’s feelings is so important.”

Deborah C. Morton ’03 said she felt that the panel was helpful in promoting understanding of mental illness.

“I think that it is good that people are talking about this,” she said.

The Mental Health Awareness and Advocacy group seeks to promote awareness of mental health issues and to aid those who have mental health problems but may be reluctant to seek help. Additional events occurring during

Mental Health Awareness Week are listed on the MHAAG’s website, www.hcs.harvard.edu/~mhaag.