Every college student knows the metaphor that sums up the stressful environment of college: A Venn diagram of grades, social life and sleep, only two of which are attainable at once. This picture is grossly oversimplified. Considering the average student may have to juggle everything from grades, jobs, family and extracurriculars to research, friends, health and relationships, the more appropriate metaphor for managing time in college is like solving a Rubik’s Cube that changes colors over time.
So it should come as no surprise that according to a 2010 Penn State study, 91 percent of counselors on college campuses have reported an increase of psychological disorders among students. Stress is not solely to blame for this increase. Some scholars say that past stigmas about mental illness are no longer present, so students are more likely to speak up about their feelings. Others attribute the increase to new programs at schools that better recognize and diagnose symptoms. Regardless of the answer, it is safe to say that competitive environments at universities play a significant role in the equation.
Universities today must be equipped with the necessary resources to combat the growing number of students with mental health issues such as anxiety and depression. At LSU that job falls to the Mental Health Service (MHS) branch of the Student Health Center.
Devoted to “aiding students in their personal growth and development” and “enhancing their mental and emotional well-being,” the MHS offers a diverse range of treatment methods such as one-on-one psychiatric counseling, crisis intervention, group counseling and stress management, all administered by licensed professionals and graduate students.
Whether or not the MHS is effective rests with its clients, students who have been through the programs and received treatment. Of course, having some dissatisfied clients does not mean the whole system is incompetent. There are bound to be failures in all medical contexts; malpractice insurance exists for a reason. Nevertheless, the best way to evaluate the effectiveness of the MHS at LSU is to gauge student satisfaction.
*Staci first started counseling for depression at MHS five years ago after struggling with family issues and final grades. She secured an appointment within a week.
But it wasn’t just punctuality that left such a good impression on Staci.
“The group therapy was what made me who I am today,” she said.
For Staci the recipe for success was a combination of personable professionals who “listened, cared and were compassionate” and the many resources available such as group therapy for women’s issues and personalized treatment.
A common concern among clients of MHS is that too often unprepared graduate students handle cases before trained professionals do. Though Staci* had a good experience with two graduate students, she largely credits her primary therapist for recovery, saying that he was a force who seeks to help people every day. Staci’s* overall impression was excellent, and her only suggestion for improvement was to increase the amount of counselors on staff to better accommodate students.
*Ryan did not have such a good experience.
After struggling with social anxiety he called the MHS last March during his junior year and got an appointment two weeks later, a substantial time to wait for anyone suffering from mental illness.
“They were so backlogged they could only fit me in for one appointment,” Ryan said.
He emphasized the need for more staff in order to service all students seeking treatment, calling the MHS an important and valuable resource.
Other clients have nothing but praise for the MHS.
*Rachel has been getting treatment at the MHS for a couple of years now for dysthymia, a mild, long-term depression. Seeing both an art therapist and a psychiatrist, Rachel, though prescribed anti-depressants, primarily utilizes a style of treatment called “sand play.” With this treatment, the patient builds scenes in a sandbox with shapes, rocks, and toys while the therapist asks questions about the sand creation in order to explore difficult emotions or conflicts.
Rachel said the treatment, which has been very effective for her, is all about figuring yourself out and trying to make sense of your emotions, adding the counselor can make all the difference.
And yet both Rachel and Staci did not count this variable of an effective counselor as a defect, which speaks volumes about the quality of the staff of the MHS. But what of Ryan’s complaint of insufficient staff, nevermind the quality?
Drayton Vincent, director of the MHS, said since the opening of the MHS in the mid-1960s not only has their staff increased from one part-time psychiatrist, but demand for service has increased as the complexity of issues presented by many students has increased.
There are currently five clinical psychologists and five clinical social workers, all of whom facilitate individual and group therapy; one psychiatrist, who provides medical evaluation and treatment; and eight part-time clinical interns, who help with counseling under the supervision of licensed professionals. Furthermore, the MHS encourages group therapy and adheres to the “short-term counseling model,” with an average of “four to six sessions” per patient.
According to Vincent the MHS strives to accommodate all patients, whether that means meeting weekly or every two or three weeks in order to fit everyone in accordingly. They also have a clinician available at all times for emergency situations. However, Vincent did acknowledge that some students wait longer than others, but he explained that long wait times are often the result of signing up late in the semester or at the busiest times like after midterms. He also mentioned several additional services available to students if they cannot receive treatment fast enough, such as The Phone, The Lighthouse, the Baton Rouge Crisis Intervention Center and the Psychological Services Center.
The MHS may be doing all it can for students with the resources it has, but those suffering with mental illness require timely and effective treatment to improve their quality of life.
*Sources requested they only be referred to using their first names for anonymity.
