Jan. 2023 Department Debrief: Counseling and Consultation Service
January 18, 2023
Counseling and Consultation Service
To contact Counseling and Consultation Service: Call (614) 292-5766 or email sl-ccs@osu.edu
Department Debrief is a monthly article from the Parent and Family Relations office dedicated to helping family members and supporters better understand the services, opportunities and support offered by particular offices for students.
This month, our office met with staff from Counseling and Consultation Service, an office dedicated to providing mental health and psychoeducational services to all current Ohio State students.
1. Your flight for New York for the Times Square Ball Drop is leaving in five minutes but you cannot leave until you describe your office's purpose in 30 seconds or less to a student. What would you say???
Counseling and Consultation Service (CCS) is a department located within The Ohio State University’s Student Life office. CCS offers a variety of mental health services to currently enrolled students, whether graduate, professional, or undergraduate. From group therapy, to individual treatment, to psychoeducational services, CCS is a department dedicated to helping your student manage their mental health while offering inclusive services to students who may face anxiety, depression, stress, and more. Jennifer Lang, an Assistant Director of Clinical Services for Counseling and Consultation Service, states CCS “are the experts in cross campus and off campus resources, individual therapy, group therapy, psychoeducation, and so much more. CCS offers a variety of on demand services including drop-in workshops and support by phone even when the office is closed. CCS will work with a student to ensure they are connected to a provider who can help them be successful.” With no fee for their services, CCS is there for your student when and if needed. Mental health is becoming increasingly emphasized by colleges for its importance and the benefits it offers students and CCS is just one office at The Ohio State University working to help your student strive with as little difficulty as possible.
2. What is one word of advice you would offer to families and students for success at The Ohio State University?
Leaving for college is a large stepping stone into adulthood that often causes many students to face mental health troubles. Lang states she thinks both families and students should think about their student’s mental health as an important part of their ability to be academically successful and vice versa. They both mutually inform one another and getting to know the resources available across the campus and community is something Lang recommends all parents, students, and family members take the time to do. Proactively getting set up with different resources can create a good platform that helps your student continue their academics, social lives, and careers in an exciting but healthy way. CCS is just one resource at The Ohio State University that can be extremely beneficial for your student.
Lang went on to state phone screenings are just one popular and available service CCS offers to students that can be utilized as “a gateway,” to recognize the benefits and accessibility of resources offered by The Ohio State University. After meeting by phone with a CCS clinician, your student can receive guidance on what the next best step is. As stated by Lang, “Mental health is not one size fits all. What one person might need is different from what another person might need.” The phone screening allows CCS to determine what next step is the best fit for your student while remaining a support for your student who offers confidential guidance and advice.
Additionally, we asked Lang what advice she would offer to students that are struggling to come to terms with their mental health and the possibility of asking for help, especially young men. “…Sometimes we need to frame mental health care as being just part of our overall holistic health, right?” Lang went even further to compare your mental health to an organ. Stating your student should consider therapy if they are facing mental health problems just like they would see a doctor for stomach issues. Lang stated proactively utilizing the available mental health services The Ohio State University offers to your student is simply like getting a wellness check but for your mind. Your mental and physical health is interconnected. They affect one another and getting them both occasionally checked on is not something you or your student should consider scary or unusual. Regarding men specifically, Lang stated CCS just recently completed their Men’s Mental Health Awareness month where various “stigma reducing activities” were offered throughout the month of November. CCS is an office dedicated to helping all students (regardless of their gender, race, sexuality, and nationality) with their mental health.
3. What is one service you offer students that you wish they took advantage of more??
CCS has a variety of on demand resources available for students including drop-in workshops available Monday through Friday where students can simply join and sit in on a zoom call with a therapist while they teach a skill, concept, or concern university counselors see often. As an example, Lang described the “Beating Anxiety” workshop that teaches students who experience anxiety a range of techniques from breathing skills to how to have a healthy mindset. From anxiety to perfectionism to art therapy, these workshops are available to any and all students as a form psychoeducation, advice, and therapy. Additionally, Lang went on to explain CCS’s “Let’s Talk” 20 minute consultations that are offered Monday through Friday for students to meet with a professional and receive feedback on the next possible steps they could take in their mental health journey.
Beyond just drop-in consultation services and workshops, CCS also offers your student the ability to join in on weekly and unlimited group therapy sessions. Lang describes it as the “best of both worlds,” where a therapist is able to give your student feedback and advice while identity sharing Ohio State students within their group offer support in a way a therapist cannot. With research providing evidence to the benefits of group therapy, CCS offers and encourages students to get involved. With groups that are offered to transgender students, undergraduates, BIPOC students, and more, Lang recommends you and your student take advantage of group therapy.
When asked about the services CCS offers parents that are concerned for the mental health of their student, Lang stated that although they “primarily work to provide clinical services to students at Ohio State, we are also here to provide support and consultation and ideas for other university members.” CCS takes calls from parents, faculty, and even students that are concerned for other students. CCS is able to offer advice, explain possible next steps, and illuminate the benefits CCS can offer to your student. Additionally, CCS offers parents their own drop-in workshop where Lang herself gives parents an overview of available mental health resources, psychoeducation, and insurance deliberations when it comes to health care while answering questions parents and family may have.
4. What upcoming events/deadlines do you have for parents and students that you would like them to know about??
Lang states that from February 20-24, there will be a university-wide collaboration for Love Your Body Week. “Focusing on body acceptance and body positivity at Ohio State, Love Your Body Week talks about some really important topics related to self-expression, body image, eating disorders, media representation, and impact to our physical and mental health.” Furthermore, CCS will be offering a drop-in workshop for parents (as discussed earlier by Lang) called, “Supporting your Buckeyes Plan for Mental Health and Well-being.” Available through Zoom, this workshop is open for parent and family members of an Ohio State student. With the tentative dates of February 16, March 23 and April 20, more information can be found about this workshop by visiting the Counseling and Consultation Service website.
Brooke Tacsar
Student Assistant
Parent and Family Relations