Tuesday, January 25, 2000
The University Daily Kansan
Section A • Page 5
New therapy to help stressed-out students
CAPS offers students counseling options
By Waria Chulindra writer@kansan.com Kansan staff writer
University of Kansas students should know that when they have problems, they are not alone.
Counseling and Psychological Services offers an anonymous outlet for students to discuss their personal problems with professionals. Five counseling groups for different issues concerning students are available, and each group is led by a senior staff member and an intern or practicum student.
Frank DeSalvo, director of CAPS, said that group therapy was helpful in dealing with many problems by allowing students to see their problems from a different perspective. He leads the general psychotherapy group that discusses problems some students have adjusting to college — such as procrastination or family conflicts.
"People think they're the only ones struggling with these issues," DeSalvo said. "But they look around the room and see folks that look normal and healthy. If they walked down the street, they'd think they had the world by the tail."
He said confidentiality was not a problem because everyone in the group was equally invested to the group. If students were in a group in which they knew someone, they had the option to switch groups or receive individual counseling instead. However, if the two students do not mind, they can remain in the same groun.
DeSalvo also said students were discouraged from dating or having social contact with members of the counseling groups.
"Those relationships confuse working relationships in counseling groups," he said. "(Students) may not be as open or
may want to make a good impression."
He said students often were reluctant to join group counseling because they thought they would be forced to speak, but aside from introducing themselves and explaining why they joined the group, students spoke when they wanted. DeSalvo said that while some people spoke more than others, it did not mean they were not getting as much out of the counseling.
"We try and let people be who they are and respect those differences," DeSalvo said.
A majority of the students in group counseling learned about it from other services they received from CAPS, said John Wade, staff psychologist and leader of the anxiety and stress management group.
Wade said that like beginning anything new, it was not uncommon for students to feel anxious when they started group counseling. He said students were asked to attend group counseling for a few weeks before they decided whether to continue.
"For some people, group therapy does present a challenge," he said. "There's something powerful about people working together on common issues."
"There seems to be a comfort level for women who value working on things for an extended period of time," she said.
Joyce Davidson, staff psychologist, said that the women's personal growth groups drew a lot of interest, especially for women who were more comfortable in an all-woman group.
Group counseling is ongoing, and students may join any time of the year if groups are not full. Students are required to meet with a group leader for a free 50-minute initial screening to determine whether group counseling will benefit the student. Staff members also welcome suggestions for groups.
STUDENT COUNSELING
Group counseling is $9 a session. For more information, call CAPS at 864-2277.
Group Counseling offered at Counseling and Psychological Services
Anxiety and Stress Management
6:7-30 p.m. Tuesdays This group consists of five rotating sessions with a topical presentation followed by a group discussion. Topics covered are cognitive strategies for stress management, self management, study skills and relaxation training.
4:30-6 p.m. Tuesdays This group discusses a variety of issues including academic performance, motivation, romantic relationships, family relationships, establishing independence, separation and loss, making friends, assertiveness and procrastination. Membership is limited to 10.
Women's Personal Growth
4-5:30 p.m. Tuesday
4. 5:30 p.m. Wednesday This general group for women discusses relationships, self esteem, stress, victimization experiences, anxiety, family issues and depression. Membership is limited to 8. Dissertation Distress/Thesis
Torment Group
3:30-5:30 First and third Wednesday of each month This group is open to students from all graduate programs. It focuses on problem solving, taking positive action and staying motivated.
Bisexual Men
5:6-30 p.m. Wednesdays This group provides a safe, supportive forum for men to discuss relationships, self esteem, self acceptance, coming out and being out, body image, sexuality, gender and sexual concerns.
By Kandwa Kankonde
writer@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
Student clinics to help zap stress
Call them the hopeful three, Jennifer Cheavens, Amber Gum and David Feldman are trying to bring new ways to deal with the common diseases of the mind — stress, anxiety and depression — into the new year.
The three are clinical psychology doctoral students grappling with the accumulated knowledge from past studies dealing with these nagging and strength-sapping mental illnesses.
Cheavens said that they were conducting a study in an attempt to come up with a new therapy for stressed-out and emotionally zapped individuals. They believe that these problems are not exclusive to students, but are pervasive among all age groups, she said.
However, for the purposes of their study, participants should be 18 years old or older. a legal requirement.
The response from the public has been overwhelming, Cheavens said, with 15 respondents from the Lawrence area.
They have set up two clinics, one at Fraser Hall and the other at a site in Overland Park.
"The areas we are interested in studying are anxiety, stress and at least, mild depression." Feldman said. "The participants we are looking for to participate in these therapies and
support groups are people who have some anxiety or are experiencing some stress or are feeling down."
Cheavens explained why people should be involved in the study.
"What we are trying to teach is a way to think about anxiety or stress," she said. "College students, for example, are dealing with a variety of mental problems. They have to put up with new roommates, enrollment and figuring out what the heck are they doing in college."
Cheavens said that the study aimed to equip the participants with skills in three areas: setting goals, figuring out how to get those goals and staying motivated all the way to achieve them.
Feldman said that the therapy they were working on would help people to begin to answer the question, 'What do I want out of life?'
Another question he and his colleagues want answered by the end of the study is whether the therapy works, he said.
The therapists said that they had more to learn and that it would require continued research to obtain 100 percent assurance that the therapy worked.
What gives them hope that their study will lead to a good therapy for anxiety, stress and depression is the work that their mentor, C.R. Snyder, already has done.
Snyder, a professor of psychology, published The Psychology of Hope. The three said that this work formed part of the foundation of their study.
Five scholarship hall spots vacant
By Jessie Meyer
writer@kansan.com
Kansas staff writer
"We did have a few cancellations come through," said Jennifer Wamelink, assistant housing director.
Students eagerly awaiting a spot in the scholarship halls may have the option to move in this semester.
There currently are five vacancies in the men's scholarship halls, three in Pearson Scholarship Hall alone. Wamelink said that there was a possibility that people could move into these vacancies this semester.
Students must apply for spots in the scholarship halls — spots that are difficult to obtain. The candidates, who are placed in an applicants' pool, are ranked, not chronologically, by but a score determined by academic standing, financial need and a set of essays and references. Wamelink said.
She said once a student was admitted to a scholarship hall, he or she must take 28 hours each
"I didn't get in until after three semesters. For me, it was worth the wait.I am glad they have standards like that."
Rob Maddux
El Dorado senior
academic year and maintain a 2.5 grade point average.
Wamelink said that it was possible for a student to be overlooked in favor of another with a higher GPA or more financial need, regardless of how long that person had been waiting.
"I didn't get in until after three semesters," said Rob Madddux, El Dorado senior and proctor of Pearson. "For me, it was worth the wait. I am glad they have standards like that."
Bart Baldwin, director of Pearson, said that the three vacancies in the hall were because of a lack of academic qualifications and unmet financial obligations.
Once in the pool, the student preferences the scholarship hall
SCHOLARSHIP HALLS
Qualifications for Scholarship Hall s Applicant must show financial need
Applicant must take 28 hours or
- Applicant must maintain at least a 2.5 GPA
Applicant must till out an application including essays and references
in which he or she would like to live.
"We try to honor their preferences," Wamelink said. "But it depends on the vacancies."
With the addition of Margaret Amini Scholarship Hall for women this fall, the already-shallow applicant pool is expected to drain even more. Although there are no vacancies in the women's scholarship halls this semester, the addition of Margaret Amini Scholarship Hall will add 50 vacancies for women in the fall.
Ken Stoner, director of student housing, said the Department of Student Housing would try to bring the scholarship halls up to 100 percent capacity this spring.
Wamelink said the priority deadline for applications for next year was Feb. 15.
Bundled up
Trying to keep warm Jon Hof, Leawood freshman, waits for a bus in front of Snow Hall. Yesterday morning students woke to brisk winds following the weekend's snowy weather. Photo by Selen Jabara/KANSAN.
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