When our oldest child was five, she broke her leg while playing in an inflatable bouncing castle. While she was in a great deal of pain, it was only a matter of hours before she was treated and released from St. Louis Children’s Hospital, sporting a brand-new pink cast. We bought her a new doll and showered her with love and attention. While the experience and pain may have been traumatic, people who saw her hobbling along on her crutches would chat and commiserate with her and give her a few words of encouragement.

When we see someone with a physical ailment, their distress and needs are often apparent. We recognize that they may need our assistance or a little more care and consideration. What happens when we see someone who is suffering from mental or emotional pain or distress? Do we recognize the signs? Do we offer to help? Do we even know what help might look like?

For some, young adulthood can be a period of great personal growth and challenges. Young adults may be dealing with separating from home, learning to build satisfying relationships, negotiating conflict, making responsible decisions, clarifying their values and establishing an individual identity. While college is a time for advancement in educational, social, personal and spiritual spheres, the drive to excel pulls students in many directions.

Young people will study hard, perhaps do research and hopefully develop friendships for a lifetime. With commitments to class and work, it can sometimes be all too easy to forget how to take time for themselves and keep their lives balanced. When this happens, students may find themselves feeling lost and uncentered.

There is good news. Young people are not alone.

From my experience, many new students do not realize that there is an extensive support system on campus for those students who find themselves feeling out of balance. Along with their physical care, Student Health Services also provides excellent mental health counseling. Cornerstone and many academic departments provide services that students can take advantage of for help in their studies. In addition, there are many people throughout the campus to talk to. Resident advisors, Residential College Directors, professors and others care about the success and well-being of each member of the community.

Campus religious groups give students the opportunity to connect with a community of faith and culture on a meaningful level, and religious leaders are frequently the first to refer young people to counselors, therapists and relevant resources.

There are also resources off-campus in St. Louis available for young people. Some charge a fixed fee, while others offer their services on a sliding scale based on one’s ability to pay.

Of course, this is relevant to all students, and not just those experiencing mental distress. As a community, it is vital that we all look out for each other. We have friends, acquaintances, classmates or floormates who are struggling in one way or another. Our friendship matters, both to those nearest to us and also to those in the periphery of our friendship. We owe it to them—and to ourselves—to build the kind of caring and inclusive community we aspire to achieve. We need to remind those who are suffering that everyone is important to someone.

Please know that just because someone projects a positive message on social media does not guarantee that all is well in their world. Put down your phone and talk to them! Remember that Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat are not genuine reflections of people’s lives. Rather, they are a curated version of the lives they want others to think they lead. In the words of a famous scholar and mentor to thousands of students, Rabbi Volf Greenglass: “Stop comparing your inner struggles with someone else’s outer appearance.”

My daughter’s leg healed. Today, she walks with no difficulty. For her, the trauma was not lasting. For those who suffer in silence, “casts” are also available. Just as there is no shame in seeking treatment for a broken leg, there is also no shame in seeking treatment for mental health.

Awareness is the first step. Knowledge a close second. But action, coupled with love, is most important: It can change someone’s reality for the better.

Rabbi Hershey Novack is beginning his 16th year serving as campus rabbi and director of Chabad on Campus–Rohr Center for Jewish Life serving Washington University. Readers are invited to an dinner and open house, to be held later today, Thursday afternoon, Aug. 24, from 4:45 – 6:00 p.m. at the Chabad House at 7018 Forsyth Blvd. Meet Jewish student leaders and learn about many opportunities for connecting with Jewish campus life, Israel-related matters on campus and Taglit-Birthright Israel trips with Mayanot.