As students and professionals, we sometimes become overwhelmed and talking through our anxieties is good. The Counselor Education Training Clinic at the University of Wyoming offers free and confidential counseling services for individuals, couples, families, adults, adolescents, and children. It is located on the bottom floor of the northeast corner of the education building.
“We are very fortunate to have a clinic right here on campus close to our offices and close to our classrooms,” Associate Professor and Clinic Director at the C.E.T.C., Michael Morgan said.
Their services are offered to UW students as well as to the Laramie community. This facility was established more than 20 years ago, and they continue to serve over 200 clients per year, who may be individuals, couples or families.
Counselors are graduate students at UW working on an advanced degree in counseling and their services are provided under qualified clinical supervision in the newly renovated clinic. All of their services are confidential and private.
“We take these students who are a part of this community and allow them to give their services back to it,” Clinic Coordinator and graduate student, Rakesh Maurya, said.
Morgan added, “We felt it would provide our students a better training opportunity if they worked with people from the community and the campus along with providing a service to people who might otherwise not have access to it. So it becomes a win-win.”
Their counseling services are designed to help with stress, worry, school or work issues and alcohol or drug abuse. They also seek to help people with depression, anxiety, family and relationship issues, and adapting to life transitions along with sexuality and identity concerns.
Mental health issues have always played a destructive role in the lives of university students.
According to the 2015 National College Health Assessment, 30 percent of students reported that stress had negatively affected their academic performance within the past year, and over 85 percent had felt overwhelmed by everything they had to do at some point within the past year, 15.8 percent of students reported that they had been diagnosed or treated by a professional for anxiety over the past year, while 13.1 percent had been diagnosed with or treated for depression.
The quick-paced and stressful life most students lead increases the need for highly trained mental health professionals to address trauma, addiction, depression, and academic and career relations in universities.
“Stress and concern have always been around, but now we have more access to information. If you read the newspaper today you see the stress and anxiety that people experience around the whole world rather than just around you,” Morgan said. “We are living in a world with less and less community support. There is no problem with technology but sometimes we use it in such manner that disconnects us from the community and makes us unable to have the support we need.”
College is a challenging and unique time. Most students are young and away from their home for the first time, with the responsibility of starting their career at this new and alien institution. So, inevitably students will face life challenges such as stress, academic difficulties, relationship issues and family problems.
Good mental health is vital for a successful college experience. If students find themselves a victim of stress, depression or any other problem they may face, counseling could be a path toward guidance on how to better improve their lives.
Students should put aside any assumptions of what they think counseling will be like. The only way to find out is to experience counseling services first hand.
The C.E.T.C. uses the latest in digital clinical technology and a team approach that makes use of live supervision. They are able to provide both high quality clinical services to their clients, and excellent clinical training for their students. They offer their services Monday through Friday and can be contacted via phone at 307-766-6820 or email them at cetc@uwyo.edu.
