Counseling and Psychological Services assists students seeking help on and off campus. CAPS helps students who may need support or are adjusting to college life and are experiencing depression or trauma.
Robin Sanabria, director of CAPS, began her position as a counselor in June 2019 and then became appointed the director of CAPS in September 2021.
Sanabria said experiencing loss is part of the human experience.
“The first thing I would say about loss is that it’s important to realize it is part of being human, and we can’t live on this earth without experiencing loss,” Sanabria said. “It’s part of that process, but it’s also hard and difficult, and everybody’s going to experience loss differently.”
She also said processing a loss is a “very individualized thing.”
“I think being able to respect the idea that everybody’s gonna go through their loss in a different way,” Sanabria said. “We have all kinds of losses, so different losses are going to affect people in different ways.”
Sanabria said a loss can mean different things to people, and not everyone will need therapy or counseling.
“Some people find their faith to be very useful,” Sanabria said. “Reaching out to friends, reaching out to family, I think it depends on the type of loss whether it’s someone that’s close to you that died, whether it’s losing a relationship, whether it’s the loss of an idea, of a goal that you had.”
Sanabria said students are welcome to come into CAPS for therapy.
“I always encourage people to reach out to other people for support and also realizing that loss is part of our experience, and thinking about what we have, what’s within our control to work through that experience,” Sanabria said.
Another resource for students seeking help is TimelyCare, a free 24/7 virtual resource for students, faculty and staff.
TimelyCare has five features, including TalkNow, which offers on-demand and 24/7 emotional support. It also has Scheduled Counseling, which allows users to select a day, hour and counselor. The Self-Care Journeys offer goal-setting tools such as interactive guides, short movies and access to yoga, meditation and other forms of self-care. The Health Coaching helps establish good eating, sleeping, time-management and mindfulness practices, among other healthy lifestyle habits. The Self-Care Content is an exploration page that offers guides for meditation and yoga. The Peer Community is an online community students all around the country can utilize to anonymously share their struggles and experiences.
Whitely Woolsey, junior art major, said she believes it is important to have a support system in place.
“I think having loved ones near and being able to talk about it and, you know, cry,” Woolsey said.
Students voice their experiences on what loss and grief can be like and how they navigated through it.
Micheal Natoli, sophomore criminal justice major, said he has experienced a loss in his life.
Natoli said he stayed busy and had support from friends.
“I kind of just made myself busy with friends,” Natoli said. “It just helps me keep my mind off things.”
Natoli said friends and hobbies help to keep the mind from thinking.
“I think it’s kind of like a 50-50 thing,” Natoli said. “I think it is a good thing to be around like family and friends, but then it’s also good to have other things that you implement.”
Natoli also said he uses the counseling services on campus.
Morgan Ellis, freshman graphic design major, said staying busy and hanging out with friends helped her through the process of loss and grief.
“My friends and family has gone through the same loss, so we supported each other through that, and I also focused on my hobbies,” Ellis said. “Just to keep my mind off things, and I remembered the good times that I had with them.”
Ellis said being around others is good, but being alone also helps in dealing with loss.
CAPS is open 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Appointments can be made online for in-person counseling, virtual meetings or group sessions.
Faculty and staff can sign up for TimelyCare through the new Employee Assistance Program.