How students can take care of their minds
By: Jools Pulcher, Art & Life Editor
College can be a stressful time for all parties involved. With everything from classes to jobs and family life, college can be an especially balancing the workload and mental health.
St. Louis Community College offers free mental health counseling in order to aid in the success of its students. These counselors are trained and kept on campus to help students with anything from a serious in the moment crisis, to more regular mental health check-ins.
According to Donna Zumwinkel, a counselor on the Florissant Valley campus, counselors can assist students with most challenges they may face. “Counselors help students with barriers that might be standing in the way of their success. Often times when students struggle in college, it is not because of their academic ability but because of other issues going on in the student’s life,” Zumwinkel said. “Things like anxiety, overwhelming stress, depression, grief or relationship problems can all impact a student’s ability to be successful in school. So we help students with strategies to deal with some of these things so they can continue working toward achieving both personal and academic goals.”
Though the issues that students come in for may range quite a bit, according to Troy Hansen, a counselor on the Meramec campus, there are a few common issues students come in for. “I would say the number one problem that students come in with is anxiety or something related to anxiety. It’s not always academic anxiety. It’s a lot of times just kind of general anxiety or due to other circumstances in their lives,” Hansen said. “Certainly, we have plenty of students who also experienced depression. That’s probably the number two situation that students would come and seek counseling for. And then the third one, is probably overall stress. It’s very stressful being a college student.”
Sometimes the Counseling Center may assist students in figuring out routines for self care to aid the students outside of therapy. “Self-care is different for every person so identifying things that can help is an individual process. For some it might be walking their dog, others it might be music, journaling or another kind of creative expression,” Zumwinkel said. “There are proven positive benefits of exercise. Research clearly shows that exercise helps manage the symptoms of both depression and anxiety. It doesn’t have to be a major workout involving gym membership … a 15 minute walk or yoga at home is a great start! In addition, Behavioral Health Response is a free community resource, available 24 hours a day throughout the St. Louis area. Put their number in your phone now (314) 469-6644.”
Ultimately, the counselors at Meramec and their counterparts across the district are willing to help anyone who may need their assistance, according to Hansen. They encourage anyone to seek them out. “The best tip I can give anyone considering counseling is when in doubt, come on over,” Hansen said.
