School counsellors?

[rosewater]

Hi, I was wondering if anyone here has spoken to their school counsellors before and if they've had any success.

I'm planning to make an appointment with my school counsellor (university counsellor, actually) soon. I am hesitant because I tried speaking to one in high school and I kind of struggled a bit to connect with him and get him to understand what I was feeling. He gave me very generic responses such as 'focus on graduating, things will get better in uni, take walks to take your mind of things'- I'm wondering if that's all the advice counsellors are qualified to give? So I don't know if making this appointment will be worth it.

I don't have the money to see an actual psycologist, and I'm assuming I might have to wait a while for an appointment. I don't even know how different it would be to just seeing my counsellor.

So if anyone here has spoken to a counsellor before I would appreciate if you could share your experiences, or if anyone could explain to me more about what the role of a counsellor is and how they would be able to help me, that would help a lot as well. Thank you.

[Nervybella]

Hi rosewater

Good on you for seeking help.

I spoke to a counsellor at my university once, last year, when I was going through a rough patch and considering deferring my course (which I later did-but that's besides the point).

This was the first time I had ever spoken to a health care professional. I found that the counsellor really focused on trying to convince me to stay at uni, telling me all the benefits of study etc and glossed over the actual issue that bought me to her office.

Since then I have seen a psychologist and found them to be very helpful.

This is only my personal experience,so please don't let it away your decision. Have you spoken to your GP about a mental health plan? You can get Medicare rebates though this (I think, don't quote me on that!!) Perhaps you could even express your concern of the costs and wait times associated with seeing a psychologist and see what they come up with?

Please let us know how you go 🙂

All the best,

Bella

[Zeal]

Hey rosewater,

I have been to a uni counsellor, but the few appointments were specifically to discuss how my mental health affected my uni study. The uni staff gave me special provisions, which allows me to get small assignment extensions when the OCD/anxiety interferes with my ability to study.
You can tell the uni counsellor what you wish to discuss, and you may decide to have follow-up sessions.

A counsellor is there to help you better understand your problems. Counsellors don't impose their views or opinions on you, but aim to work with you to find strategies to overcome issues. Various techniques can be used to help you more effectively manage feelings, thoughts and behaviours. Counsellors and psychologists do use some similar techniques, such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), which are often effective for conditions such as anxiety and depression. Both counsellors and psychologists don't prescribe medication. Only psychiatrists and doctors do so. When it comes to mental illnesses such as Bipolar, Schizophrenia and Chronic Depression, it's best to seek advice from a psychologist or psychiatrist.

The university counsellors would be professional, seeing as they're employed by a tertiary institution to help many students. If for some reason you don't relate well to one counsellor, you could ask to see a different person. It's perfectly fine to do this.

This website has reliable mental health resources: http://www.cci.health.wa.gov.au/resources/consumers.cfm
I found out about these resource guides from a mental health nurse. In addition to seeing the uni counsellor, you could look through a resource link that applies to you, or maybe even a few!

Hopefully seeing a uni counsellor will be more helpful than the one you saw in high school 🙂

Best wishes,

Zeal

[rosewater]

Hi Bella and Zeal,

Thank you so much for sharing and helping me understand. I start uni soon so if I find that my studies are being severely affected by my mental health, I figure my uni counsellor would be a good person to see. For my other mental health concerns which are not directly related to studying, I am planning to speak to a GP and hopefully they can advise me from there in terms of who is best able to help me. I hope all goes well, thanks again 🙂

[Nervybella]

Hi rosewater,

That sounds like a good plan. Let us know how you get on and good luck for uni starting soon!

Best,

Bella 🙂