Counseling department offers advice, access to resources for students struggling with mental health needs

The school counseling office may not always feel like the most welcoming environment to spill your guts in. Even though that is its main purpose, students may not feel comfortable going to an adult that they have not built a relationship with. Considering its the end of the semester and students are trying to figure out schedules, going to the counselor for help may even seem like adding to their burdens, on top of parents or guardians or friends. 

Generally, the job of a school counselor is to help aid students in maximizing their own success in promoting access to equity for all students. Their main objective is to be a vital part of school leadership, as well as provide counseling services to students to improve outcomes. 

However, the role of a student counselor often becomes misrepresented and misunderstood. Many public schools simply do not have the resources or funding to have actual trained mental health professionals on hand for students to utilize. School counselors can become overworked with extensive responsibilities such as making schedules, helping students prepare for college, and many more. Because of this, it becomes difficult for students to feel like they are able to go to the counselors for mental health help.

Junior counselor Maci Wallace experiences first hand the misconceptions surrounding the role of a school counselor, as they try to bridge the gap between their abilities and what they are trained in, as well as accessing active resources that will help students. 

“Oftentimes, our roles as school counselors can be confused with the roles of a mental health counselor,” she said. “As a school counselor, we can help and assist students, but it’s more helping students to be referred out to different mental health providers.” 

Similarly, senior counselor Lynn Swoverland recognizes the abilities that she has as a trained counselor. They cannot go in depth in changing coping mechanisms or any deeper cognitive issues, but they, as counselors, are able to refer students to trained professionals that can help them in a more suitable way. She sees a lack of resources available for people in her profession in a public school. 

“Our role as counselors is brief solution-focused support for students. We are not trained therapists; we are trained as counselors. We know warning signs and risk factors, but we’re not therapists,” she said.“That’s not our area, and with our other responsibilities we just don’t have the time or the structure to be able to serve students in that capacity.”

There are many helpful resources that are accessible to students that counselors can help them link up with.

“We can provide specific counseling agencies. For example if a student is struggling with grief, we would have specific counseling agencies that we know. We have things like REACH counseling for students that have dealt with abuse,” Swoverland said.

One specific resource, the Christine Anne Center, has an ability to help abuse victims, teens and adults included, according to Wallace. 

“We also work closely with the Christine Anne Center that helps with dealing with any time of abuse,” she said. “They meet with certain students about healthy relationships if they are in an unhealthy relationship.” 

Similarly, Swoverland recognizes the importance of the specific ways that the Christine Anne Center and its resources can be utilized by students as they may encounter unhealthy relationships interpersonally or within their own home lives as their parent or guardian may be experiencing physical abuse at home 

“Sadly, our students don’t know much about the teen advocates for Christine Anne Center,” she said. “Domestic violence is something that has been happening more and more to and around teens; if it’s happening to their guardians or adults around them or if they are in an abusive relationship themself.” 

Another resource that is available to high schoolers is a partial hospitalization program for more severe mental health problems they may face. Swoverland believes these programs may help students grappling with mental health issues. She recognizes, however, that these programs may not always be at their disposal and that therapy will usually be a more accessible form of assistance in mental health struggles. 

“Aside from counseling, sometimes students need more intense treatment, not like a hospitalization but we have something called IOP [intensive outpatient program] or PHP [partial hospitalization program] and sadly there are a lot of waitlists for those programs, but they are still on option nonetheless,” she said.

This form of inpatient or outpatient treatment is part of a broader scope of resources that are offered at West. Wallace sees this as an umbrella approach arising from a partnership with the Rise-up program. 

“Our school has a partnership with Rise-up. Rise-up is the overall umbrella and the wellness screen is a part of that and then the other part of it is Catalpa that comes into the building a few times a week,” she said. 

Given the resources that the student body has at hand, it’s important to understand the factors that give rise to the need for them. The main factors that cause stress in a high school student’s life generally arise from a lack of healthy sleeping patterns, not exercising regularly, not having healthy coping mechanisms developed, and not knowing how to manage emotions Unfortunately, a large stressor becomes school. With homework, grades, and the pressure that goes along with it, school becomes a significant trigger of anxiety for many students.

Wallace affirms that school becomes a main stressor. But, there are many different factors that become stressful in life. The pressure to have perfect grades, becoming involved, and the stress of choosing and committing to a college proves to be something that students commonly encounter within their high school career. 

“There are a lot of things that affect teens’ mental health. One of the biggest is definitely school and the stress that comes with that,” she said. “As well as the pressure that they feel from themselves or even parents and guardians to perform well in extracurriculars and actual classwork.” 

Another thing that students face and oftentimes come to counselors for is the use of social media and the ‘bullying’ that can come from it. Social media provides a new and easier way of communication between teens, which can sometimes be helpful for adolescents. But with every positive, there is always a downside. Social media allows teens to see what their friends and acquaintances are doing at pretty much all times. Being able to see and digest it with constant scrolling can create many problems, as teenagers navigate this time of their lives. 

Wallace sees the extent to which issues with social media go, and the way it can affect student’s mental health and its possible detriment. 

“Social media causes a lot of issues,” she said. “Comparing themselves to others or people just being plain mean, many students come into our office with really mean things and largely social media is to blame.” 

Because of these many issues that high schoolers face, there come problems with their relationships with school. Oftentimes, students get so stressed out with the workload of school that they’re too stressed out to even do the work that is late. Illnesses like chronic anxiety and depression may prevent a student’s ability to complete work. Communication between students and teachers is not always easy. 

Swoverland sees the issues that lie within trying to make sure that a student’s mental health comes first, and the ability to work with teachers in helping it, but believes that communication is the most important part in beginning that process. 

“For example, if a student needs an extension on something because they had a death in their family, they need to actually talk to their teacher,” she said. “What ends up happening is that they are too afraid to actually talk to their teachers so that they understand what’s going on.” 

Counselors and teachers have a very close relationship in helping students through mental health issues: they work with students everyday, and they try to build relationships with the students and can see when something is wrong. 

Swoverland expresses her gratitude to teachers as they do their best in understanding and communicating with counselors if they feel that a student is struggling. The vast majority of teachers try their hardest to be understanding and compassionate with their students if they are in crisis, according to Swoverland.  

“I personally feel like many of our teachers do an awesome job in seeking to understand or let us know if they think there is a problem with a student,” she said. “I really rely on teachers who are on the frontlines with students in the classroom.”

Wallace wishes mental health awareness could become more common in the future. There have been positive strides in widespread compassion and sympathy to those who are struggling. 

“I hope that the stigma of mental health continues to lessen and it becomes more and more normalized to talk about mental health,” she said. “If you were sick and something was physically wrong with you, you would go to the doctor. Why is mental health any different?”  

There is fear among the student body to come forward and talk about their feelings, especially with school counselors, but Swoverland has advice for those in need. 

 “I don’t know how to take that fear away from people, but I do feel like anybody who has ever leaned into their feelings and sought help has never regretted it,” she said. 

by Anika Flores

Published January 29 2024

Oshkosh West Index volume 120 issue IV