Individual Counseling
Why Counseling?
People choose to seek counseling for a variety of issues, including:
- stress or anxiety
- depression
- academic motivation
- career choice confusion
- eating disorders
- substance abuse
- family relationship conflicts
- financial stress
- grief/loss issues
- intimacy, commitment, or relationship issues
- identity concerns (e.g., ethnic/racial identity; sexual orientation, spiritual identity)
- thoughts and feelings about suicide or self-harm
- anger or thoughts of violence
What can I expect from Counseling?
- Counseling is dependent on your unique needs and strengths. Because of this, each counseling experience is unique.
- If you want to purse counseling, you must first complete an initial consultation with a counselor. An initial consultation:
- Is the first appointment with a counselor
- Takes approximately 45-50 minutes
- Is used to clarify your reasons for seeking help and to obtain background information
- Ends with an agreement between you and your counselor about the best course of action to address your concerns. This may include:
- Brief individual counseling
- Group counseling
- Referrals to other services on campus
- Referrals to professionals off campus and in the community.
- Counseling often includes:
- Learning new problem-solving or coping skills
- Increasing self-understanding
- Exploring life patterns
- Gaining a better sense of how you are influenced by your surroundings
- Sessions are typically 45-50 minutes
- Counseling is provided by licensed psychologists, licensed clinical social workers, and unlicensed trainees in these two disciplines under close supervision of our licensed staff.
How can I get the most out of Counseling?
- Attempt to clarify your goals, and what you hope to get out of the experience
- Consider how you feel about the counseling relationship
- Be an active participant
- Focus on what is most important to you
- Recognize and express feelings
- Be patient with yourself
- Ask questions
