Seth Eckert
At a time when mental health is often neglected, it is nice to know that at the Mount, there are many free services available for the sake of mental care. Gerald Rooth, Director of Counseling Services at the Mount, offered to assist in giving an overview of these services, what is offered, and where they can be found on campus.
For generalized mental care, appointments can be made with one of the counselors within counseling services. According to Rooth, “Counseling services, is a free and confidential mental health counseling service offered to all students, including graduate students.” While counseling is typically a short-term obligation, Rooth claims that “Students are encouraged to return each subsequent semester so long as they qualify for a service.”
A common question posed by students is, what is the difference between counseling and therapy. According to Rooth, “Counseling tends to be more short-term, whereas therapy is more targeted and long-term. For instance, like eating disorder treatment or trauma treatment.” Furthermore, “If an individual comes into our care and it’s clear that they would benefit from more targeted treatment, or a higher level of care, or a more specialized level of care, we would try to collaborate with the student to try to get them a referral to a resource in the community.”
Should an emergency arrive after hours, Counseling Services has a solution, “Our office is also, in a way, available after hours outside of business hours. So those are through the campus crisis protocols. If the crisis or emergency happens after hours, the student needs to contact their RA or public safety.” Rooth admits that there is ‘a bit of a stigma’ around contacting Counseling Services or your RA. However, it is extremely important to know that help is available at all hours of the day. Should a student feel that they are not comfortable talking to a counselor, there are alternatives.
Every so often, Counseling Services offers various group counseling events to promote healthy minds. This semester, Counseling Services is offering “Midday Mindfulness Thursdays”, which according to Rooth, is an experiential type of counseling. To elaborate Rooth continued, “There’s different types of group counseling. I think, generally, people will hear group counseling, and they think we’re going to sit around in a circle and just like go around and share stories. And that’s a type of group, that’s a process group. Right? But there’s other types and the one that we’re doing today is considered an experiential group, so you’re actually experiencing a type of exercise or skills-based activity.” For Midday Mindfulness, students are not required to turn on their cameras or talk, they can simply follow along and participate at their own pace, as it is conducted through zoom meetings.
Counseling Services also offers ‘Self-Care Hikes’, with the most recent one being held on September 28. Information regarding any events conducted by Counseling Services will be announced through email. Counseling Services are located in Lower McGowan, which is located underneath Patriot Hall, open from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. Any inquiries about counseling services or scheduling a meeting can all be conducted on their website.
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