UA News

Whether dealing with relationship problems, unhealthy eating habits or test anxiety, UA undergraduate and graduate students can rely on Counseling and Psychological Services for support.

The start of the academic year is a peak period for student apprehension and stress, and University of Arizona counselors and resident assistants are ready to help.

For many students – undergraduates and graduates alike – new environments, faces and routines can make for heavy burdens, said Glenn Matchett-Morris, assistant director for the UA's Counseling and Psychological Services, or CAPS, which is part of the UA's Campus Health Service.

He and other staff members on campus are gearing up to offer a range of programs and services to aid students making the adjustment.

"We see the broad spectrum," Matchett-Morris said. "Particularly during fall semester, we see a spike among freshmen who are adjusting because they are moving away from home, moving out of their home state and are now in this big school and may not know anyone."

During Wildcat Welcome, which is held at the UA through Aug. 29, CAPS staff members will be dispensing water around campus and informing the community of their services.

CAPS also is expanding its support groups and will be introducing meditation and stress management groups, among others. Additionally, the LGBTQ Support Group, sponsored by CAPS, LGBTQ Affairs and the Dean of Students, meets Tuesdays at the Student Union Memorial Center. 

"We're adding and adding all the time things that we do," said Debra Cox-Howard, a licensed counselor who offers direct counseling and oversees the outreach programs for CAPS.

CAPS also has resources for parents and families, such as Parents Matter, an online program designed to help family members detect negative shifts or behavioral changes in their children. 

"Outreach is a way to demystify good mental health," she added.

Also, for the first time the staff will be involved in Homecoming, which will be held Oct. 21-23. And with space already designated, staff members are raising funds to open a relaxation station.

"What we're trying to do is to get information out about things that people don't want to talk about, but to do it in a way that is not scary," Cox-Howard said.

It is widely acknowledged that well-adjusted, balanced individuals have a tendency to perform better and experience less stress. 

Yet mental health services retain a stigma.

CAPS offers a broad range of programs and services, but they are not meant just for students who have been diagnosed with a mental-health condition. They're also for students dealing with roommate and relationship problems, anxiety, lack of sleep, eating disorders, body image issues, sexuality, alcohol dependency and substance abuse and thoughts of suicide, among other things. 

"Some people come reluctantly, and they have this sense that if they were just strong enough they could push through or will it away," Matchett-Morris said. "But we try to educate people that they don't need to feel that way. If they get the flu, they seek help. This is no different."

Graduate and professional students are not exempt from such feelings, though their experience can be quite different than that of undergraduates. 

"At the graduate level it seems to be a different level of stress among students," Matchett-Morris said. "They tend to be high achievers and, sometimes, perfectionistic. It's almost a different level of distress among graduate students." 

To prepare, Cox-Howard and others have spent recent weeks offering training sessions for campus divisions, teaching peer mentors, resident assistants, Think Tank staff and others how to help students in crisis.

"The idea is not to make them mini counselors," she said, "but to bring to the forefront of their minds the resources they do have for their students."