For the upcoming National Depression Screening, Emporia State University’s Counseling Center will have its sixth annual free Depression Screening from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Sept. 28, 29 and 30, on the basement floor of William Allen White Library.

“It is impossible for counselors to meet all the students on campus, but with Depression Screening, we can go out and meet a lot of different students,” said Bonnie Starr, counselor and biofeedback coordinator of Student Counseling Center.

The purpose of the Depression Screening is to screen students who may be at risk for depression and help them get in contact with campus resources. The Counseling Center screened more than 500 students and made appointments with about 60 students last year.

Shubha Chatterjee, graduate art therapy student and mental health communication major, will help at the event for her third time this year.

“It is a very general depression screening and students can learn the relaxation techniques for our mind and body,” Chatterjee said.

Students will be asked to take the Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ9) and be scored before being sent to talk with counselors.

Shana Smith, counselor at the Counseling Center, said this year the center newly provides an online screening questionnaire that students can take ahead of time and bring to the library for scoring and talking to the counselors.

“We are trying to make it readily accessible for students,” Smith said.

Each student has five to 10minutes to talk with counselors, with a maximum of 15 minutes. The counseling will be presented individually in five different study rooms downstairs and is confidential. Students can also make hour-long appointments with counselors at the Counseling Center.

Smith said students should not only be concerned with the score of the questionnaire, but also with talking to counselors.

Students who have the following symptoms for more than two weeks may be at risk of depression: not being able to sleep or sleeping too much, eating too little or eating too much, overall depressed mood or feeling sad.

“Students don’t have to have depression to come to talk, but maybe there is something happening in their lives, and they need a professional experienced counselor to make it less scary,” Smith said.

As a student from India, Chatterjee said the Depression Screening is especially a good tool for international students, who are facing more stress about moving from foreign countries and having the different backgrounds and studying in foreign languages.

According to Chatterjee, it is important to learn how to relax, even with economic and graduating stress.

Art Therapy is doing handcrafts or doing art work to get enjoyment and relaxation, such as painting, singing songs or making beads. Biofeedback is the technique of relaxation to empower the body and mind by adjusting breathing or other physical actions.

“I really think the Biofeedback and Art Therapy really help, especially since it is free,” Chatterjee said.

Lauren Lau

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With National Eating Disorder Awareness Week falling on the week of Feb. 28 -March 6, Emporia State’s counseling department and its students face the complex issue of eating disorders.

“[My friend] was always very conscious of what she was eating, looking like and how people were seeing her,” said Matt Bricker, senior sociology major. “She tried counseling, but that was hit and miss. Recovery was a long process for her, and it took a lot of effort.”

The purpose of National Eating Disorder Awareness Week is to ultimately prevent eating disorders and body image issues while reducing the stigma surrounding eating disorders and improving access to treatment, according to the National Eating Disorder Awareness’ official Web site.

“Eating disorders are not talked about very often,” said Anita Bodkin, counselor for Emporia State’s counseling center. “It’s a hard thing to admit to but our campus has students with eating disorders just like any other college campus.”

Bodkin says the consumption, or purging, of food for the body can be an attempt to fulfill some other emotional need that is being unfulfilled.

“Eating disorders are often called a ‘needing disorder,’” said Sally Crawford-Fowler, assistant director of student wellness of the counseling center. “There is a need to feel good, and I think the media and most of society puts a lot of pressure on people to be a certain way to feel good. Eating disorders are much more common amongst people with perfectionist personalities.”

The counseling associated with helping alleviate the effects of eating disorders involves a significant amount of counseling and discussion, Bodkin said.

“We try to help the person figure out that need that is going unfulfilled,” Bodkin said. “Once we’ve identified that need we try and help them meet it in a healthy and productive manner.”

ESU counselors provide services for students with eating disorders, but the center has no formal plans for National Eating Disorder Awareness Week. The center’s commitment to providing care for eating disorders all the time instead of one week a year is the reason for the lack of plans, Crawford-Fowler said.

“Most people don’t seek treatment till it interferes with their social lives,” Crawford-Fowler said. “We always have literature and counselors available for anyone who needs it.”

Many students enter college with eating disorders, or other issues, that they did not have the resources to treat before, Bodkin said.

“My friend had an eating disorder in high school,” Bricker said. “She was only able to start recovery in college.”

Peer groups and self-image were the keys to Bricker’s friend’s recovery from the effects of her eating disorder.

“She definitely needed a better support group,” Bricker said. “Some of her friends had similar problems, and it didn’t help her. She seems much happier now, and less concerned with perceptions and much more willing to be herself.”

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Emporia State’s counseling center offers guidance and an understanding ear to those that need it.

“I had a lot of anger displacement issues and issues from the past with my family,” said Michael Gilbert, junior crime and delinquency studies major. “I thought they’d go away in college, but they were effecting my daily interactions with others. I was tired of feeling angry and worthless, so I finally decided to go to the counseling center.”

ESU’s counseling center provides multiple free services for ESU students that include Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention, ADHD screening and depression screening.

“I hope all students get these services if they need them,” said Sally Crawford-Fowler, assistant director of student wellness of the counseling center. “We stay very busy here, and most of us have full case loads.”

The staff has noticed a lessening of the stigmas that used to be associated with mental health treatment Crawford-Fowler said.

“I think the tradition of needing to pull yourself up by your bootstraps is slowly going away,” Crawford-Fowler said. “People sometimes need guidance through these times, and we’re here for them when they want it.”

Students today have more on their plates and it causes them to need more counseling than past generations, said Anita Bodkin, counselor for the ESU counseling center.

“College students today are juggling a lot more than in the past,” Bodkin said. “A lot of them come in with issues that they haven’t addressed before college or that didn’t exist until college.”

The counseling center’s staff take pride in their profession and enjoy being able to help students resolve their problems.

“I like working with the clients here,” Bodkin said. “The population we deal with is very appealing to me.”

The counseling center’s treatment and counseling can help people, particularly if they desire to help themselves, Gilbert said.

“I had a very positive experience at the counseling center,” Gilbert said. “There are things that people will have to learn to accept if they get counseling. They can’t change other people or how the world is but they can change their view of the world.”

The staff acknowledges that not every individual has their particular problems solved with the counseling center’s guidance.

“I wish I could say all issues are resolved and they’re ok like everybody else,” Bodkin said. “Unfortunately sometimes they need help beyond what we have here, but we can refer them if it is needed.”

Staff members hope that more students will take advantage of the services offered by the center.

“I’d like to see more students use us,” Bodkin said. “I think we can be a huge help, especially since our services are free.”

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The Counseling Center at Emporia State is sponsoring a new program called Mind, Body and Spirit, aimed at helping college students cope with everyday problems in life. Two ESU seniors currently working at the counseling center as interns, Elaine Reichert and Misti Richmond, lead the group.

“The group formed to talk about the basics that college students may struggle with in life,” Richmond said.

The group will meet every Wednesday at 3 p.m., until March 10, and will discuss five main topics – health, relationships, fighting fair in relationships, stress and self-esteem. The group will take an in depth look at the topic, discussing everything related to the topic that the students may have issues with.

“Each week, participants in the group will take part in a kind of discussion about the topic and each person will get to present their opinions on the topic and hear others’ opinions, too,” Reichert said.

Though this is the first semester that this group has met, and there has only been one session so far, Reichert expressed that she was happy with the turnout from the first meeting.

“It has been good so far. We had about six to eight students at the first session, which to me is a very good amount, so I would say it has been a success so far. I think our first discussion was great, and I think we really got into the topic,” she said.

Though she was satisfied with the amount of students at the first meeting, Reichert expressed that she would like to see more people attend.

“I think there is always room for more people if there are those interested,” Reichert said. “We can make the adjustments needed to accommodate more if there are those who wish to attend. It would be great to have more so that we could hear different viewpoints and takes on issue we discuss in the meetings.”

Reichert also said that this group was a little different from other counseling groups on campus because it is referred to as a “group counseling session.” Because of this group setting, students can get the opinions and feedback of the counselors and fellow students alike. This, according to Reichert, provides the students with lots of different viewpoints on one subject.

Richmond also said that there were no other group counseling sessions that she knew of in the Rehabilitation Counseling Department at ESU, making this group unique.

Though Reichert and Richmond both carry the job titles of “case manager,” they are moderating the group as a fulfillment of their internship.

According to Richmond, case managers accommodate students in whatever ways they can, providing academic assistance and finding other accommodations as needed. Richmond said she is excited about the Mind, Body and Spirit meetings and hopes ESU continues the program after she and Reichert graduate.

“(Elaine and I) graduate in May, so this is our only semester of leading the group, but I think it has been a very good thing, and I certainly hope that someone else can continue it next year,” she said.

Students who are interested in attending are encouraged by both Richmond and Reichert to contact the Counseling Center, at (620) 341-5221 or to stop by the Office of Disability Services, located at 211 Morse Hall, at 3 p.m. on Wednesdays to join in the group.

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