Student Counseling Service Helping Students Stay Mentally Healthy During Pandemic

On Tuesday, an estimated 24 students attended Readjusting to Life During COVID-19 — an event hosted by Liberty University’s Student Counseling Services to help students cope with the struggles of returning to school during a global pandemic.

The meeting lasted an hour and a half and examined biblical examples of resiliency, the stressors of COVID-19, healthy coping styles and provided resources on how to learn more about resiliency.

“During quarantine my mental health was not the best,” Senior Family and Consumer Sciences major Cameron Peck said. “I was battling loneliness and major anxiety; personally just talking to people who came to this meeting and seeing that they were also suffering from those things helped me have some peace that I’m not alone.”

Student Counseling Services said that the goal of this event was to teach students the importance of resiliency during hardships, specifically in relation to COVID-19.

“Because resiliency is demonstrated during times of suffering or setbacks, and it is a refusal to quit and bounce back, we felt that students would greatly benefit from learning how to be resilient,” Counselor Samuel Landa said. “Specifically, we wanted to help them learn what resources to look for, how to develop a sense of awareness and how to develop healthy coping styles.”

In addition, the meeting offered information on upcoming events hosted by the Student Counseling Services and complimentary fidget sticks.

This semester, the Student Counseling Services is going through what they call The Enrichment Series. In October, the discussion will be on Revisiting the Politics of Silence and Finding Compassion in the Current Racial Climate. This will be followed by Restating Your Boundaries & Drawing Healthy Lines With Your Family in November.

The last event listed on their website is in April, titled Reexamining Your Future & What I Wish I Knew When I Graduated.

Student Counseling Services also offers a wide variety of counseling opportunities such as; psychiatric evaluations, group counseling, substance abuse counseling, extended counseling with a community provider, problem focused sessions, individual counseling, Celebrate Recovery, on-call mental health crisis services, couples or family counseling and emotional wellness workshops.

All of these opportunities are cost-free to students. Appointments can be scheduled over the phone, through email or on the Student Counseling Services website.

Addi Tarr is a News Reporter. Follow her on Twitter at @addi_tarr.