Nova Scotia student felt forced to sign 'gag order' about mental health struggles

A student at Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax says he was forced to sign an agreement that he would not discuss his mental health issues with his friends, or risk being evicted from residence.

Brody Stuart-Verner, 19, says he's speaking out in an effort to change the school's policy and make sure other universities in Canada aren't taking a similar approach to mental health.

"It was a constant walking on eggshells," he said of his time on campus. "It was a constant making excuses."

Asking for help

The situation began in September 2015 when Stuart-Verner, who is from Sussex, N.B., entered his second year of the public relations program.

"My depression hit me the hardest," he said. After going to his resident assistant to ask for help because he was feeling suicidal, he went to the hospital. When he returned to campus, he was called into a meeting with the residence manager.

"Once I arrived in her office, she promptly placed a pen and a piece of paper that read 'Confidential Wellness Agreement' in front of me."

Signing the agreement

The agreement said that if students find themselves in crisis, they need to turn to professionals for help. But one line in particular caught Stuart-Verner's eye.

The student "will not discuss or engage in conversations with residence students regarding personal issues, namely the student's self-destructive thoughts," it read. "Only by working together, we can bring about a successful student and residence experience."

The document said if he broke the agreement, his lease would be terminated.

A 'gag order'

Stuart-Verner calls it a gag order.

"I felt it was completely out of line, even at the time, but again, the ultimatum was sign it or get out of residence, and after paying thousands of dollars, the latter wasn't really an option," he said. "I wasn't in the state of mind to question it further."

Over time, he did question it.

He said he was private about his health to begin with, but came to feel that he was being forced to be silent, even when people asked if he was OK. He told friends he was overtired or made other excuses if they found him upset.

Changing the rules

Finally, when he finished the school year, he approached the school about the policy.

"I don't have to worry anymore about having my lease be terminated and me being made homeless."

Stuart-Verner, who's working in P.E.I. for the summer, said he asked the university to apologize and re-examine how it deals with these cases.

The school says this is an unfortunate misunderstanding. 

"I'm sorry this agreement made him feel isolated," said Paula Barry, the associate vice-president, student experience, told CBC News. "That was never the intent of the agreement."

She said the agreements are put in place to support a student in residence in rare circumstances.

In the last three years, the school has signed six wellness agreements. Not all contain the controversial clause. She said the goal was to create a safe school environment for Stuart-Verner. 

"Now, when I look at it from a more objective place, I can see that the language could be misconstrued quite easily."

Barry couldn't say specifically why the restriction was included in Stuart-Verner's agreement because of privacy reasons. 

"We typically would very much encourage a student to talk to their peers about their mental health concerns that they have, and in fact, we run several campaigns about this."

Various supports

Barry said the school offers many levels of support to help students with mental health needs, including counselling services, access to a nurse, peer mental health support workers and their residence leaders. 

"It certainly wasn't a gag order," Barry said. "There are times … when we feel that a student needs to make sure that they're reaching out to the right people who can provide them with the appropriate response that they're going to need in the time of crisis."

Barry said they'll be working with health professionals and the students union this summer to ensure they're providing students the appropriate level of support and using appropriate language.

'Bewildering' action

Stuart-Verner is still frustrated. He said he received an email, but still no phone call from the school to discuss the issue.

"It's quite bewildering to me," he said.

But he added that he's in a much better place to take on the school's policy.

"In terms of my mental health, I'm doing so much better than I was before."