The ETSU Counseling Center offers a free drop-in session called Let’s Talk for students needing advice and support who do not want to attend on-going counseling.
“Let’s Talk is a great addition to what we do, because what it offers students is it’s a casual drop-in, so it reaches a lot of students that wouldn’t normally come to counseling,” said ETSU counselor and Associate Director of Clinical Services Rebecca Alexander.
The program is geared toward students that are afraid of counseling, do not want to commit to counseling, do not want to fill out the paperwork or do not want to wait in the lobby to see a counselor.
These sessions are informal. There is no appointment needed, the sessions are confidential and there is no paperwork. Counselors are available simply to listen to students and help figure out what they need. Depending on how long a student needs to talk, a session can be as short as fifteen to twenty minutes.
Getting into regular counseling is more time consuming. Students must fill out a needs assessment, which can take up to 20 minutes. Then they must meet with an intake counselor, and they might have to wait up to a week to get a scheduled appointment.
“It’s designed for people that are just having an in the moment stressor,” said Alexander. “So, somebody who just thought they failed an exam, or somebody trying to figure their way out through a breakup or somebody who just got into a fight with their roommate and they don’t know how to fix it.”
The program allows students to feel better by getting things off their chests and talking about their problems with somebody who will listen to them.
Let’s Talk has several different locations across campus this fall including Sherrod Library Room 328, the Millennium Center and the counseling center in Neil Dossett. They also have a location in Buc Sports specifically for student athletes.
This wide variety of access reduces barriers because students do not have to go to the counseling center for counseling.
The program started two years ago after an ETSU counselor learned about the idea at a conference. The model for Let’s Talk was created by Cornell University, and it has been adopted by many universities across the country.
“Mental health is especially important during college years because the majority of mental health problems first manifest between the ages of 17 and 24,” said ETSU Counseling Center Director Dan Jones.
Jones said biologically diagnosable psychological illnesses such as anxiety, depression, bipolar and obsessive-compulsive disorder usually manifest for the first time in college. Counseling provides a safety net to keep students enrolled in school and help them be successful.
The current Let’s Talk counselors are Rebecca Alexander, Natalie Wigle, Eric Feltman, Loren Biggs and Dan Jones. Let’s Talk sessions in Neil Dossett are held by interns from the counseling center.
The ETSU Counseling Center tested out Let’s Talk subtly during its first year, and they did not advertise for it much. After seeing its reception during the first year, they expanded into additional hours in the library and increased their advertising.
Now they advertise on their website and with flyers and yard signs across campus. There is also a sign with days and hours for Let’s Talk on the third floor of the library when you first come out of the stairwell.
“In order to access our learning brain, we have to feel healthy, and well, and safe and have our basic needs met,” said Alexander. “So, if we are feeling anxious, or depressed, or stressed, or afraid, or violated or anything like that, we are in a part of our brain that is not our learning brain, and it overrides the learning brain.”
To learn more about Let’s Talk or find times and locations, visit https://www.etsu.edu/students/counseling/services/letstalk.php
