With finals approaching, the unpredictable weather, sicknesses, and political/world issues, the stress is heavy right now.  

Then to add to all of this: three students passed away this academic year.  Maybe you knew them, maybe you didn’t, but either way, it’s hard for anyone on campus to say they weren’t affected.  

It’s exceedingly apparent how much pressure students are feeling and though there are similar struggles, we all have unique experiences that contribute to the stress we may feel.

The Wellness Center is here to offer support during this crunch time.  Simply, we provide free mental health counseling, nursing services, and wellness education to all students remotely or in person from 9-4 p.m. Monday through Friday during the academic year.  If we can’t do it or have it, we’ll find a referral or resource to get what you need.

I’ve heard a few rumors that may have students reluctant to stop in so I hope to make some clarifications:

We don’t share student information without their consent unless there is a serious health or safety risk: This is sometimes frustrating for family, faculty and staff, but unless a student gives us permission to share, we can’t (and happily don’t) give information.  We want to feel like a safe space for students to come and share their concerns. We only break confidentiality if someone is in serious risk of danger AND only report to a program that we believe can reduce the risk.  This doesn’t mean an automatic report to the college or family, but more likely to an outside medical/mental health agency.  

We don’t send students on “grippy sock vacations” if they say they’re suicidal:  First, we do not determine if someone will be hospitalized.  A community crisis worker or the hospital itself determines that.  Second, if a student is reporting they are having suicidal thoughts, that is not an immediate crisis screening.  We are here to explore with students why these thoughts are occurring, provide coping skills, and bolster the positives of alternative options. The only time we will conduct a crisis screening is if a student states they have a plan on how they will kill themselves, have intent to follow through with killing themselves, and/or will not or is unable to agree they will be safe if they are on their own.  That’s the only time we will have community crisis screen to determine if hospitalization is necessary.  

We do have “real” counselors:  I’m a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who has been practicing psychotherapy in the community since 2015.  We have a licensed mental health counselor, a rostered psychotherapist, and two master’s level mental health counseling interns.  We are all trained (or being trained) to provide therapy at a professional level that is equal to what you would receive off-campus.  The caveat is we are a short-term solution.  Our services are mostly available only during fall and spring semesters and we cannot work with students after they leave or graduate.  We work with students to get to a stable place (or better!) and if it looks like they need support beyond what we can give, we refer to more long-term services.

In short, we’re here for the students.  Let us know how we can offer support to you individually or on a larger scale.  Feel free to contact me by emailing Jacqueline.eddy@vermontstate.edu, call 802-438-1346, or stop by.

– Jacqueline Eddy 

Associate Director of Health and Wellness