By: Kniya Potts
As a student at AUM, something that would make a difference in your college career would be to utilize and take advantage of the counseling services here on campus. Coming in as a first-time freshman can be overwhelming. Making use of this program has been beneficial to many students.
According to Dr. Hemmings, the counseling services here at AUM enjoy working with students. The services here are free, so she strongly encourages students to utilize them. “The counseling services at AUM are phenomenal. We’ve got a great team here. We do not charge, and you can come from your very first freshman day until you graduate”, says Dr. Hemmings. Some colleges claim you only get eight sessions. The counseling services at AUM have an unlimited number of sessions and attendants.
Information was obtained from Dr. Hemmings regarding the types of counseling services offered. Dr. Hemmings says, “Well, there’s individual counseling. We do not do couple’s counseling.” She also mentioned that the counseling services at AUM convene workshops. “We hold workshops, like psychoeducation, learning to deal with stress, different topics, and also have groups that are just smaller amounts of students that are interested in the same topic”, Dr. Hemmings adds. These are helpful tools that students can utilize to make their journey here successful.
So, what can we expect in counseling? This is a big question many students will ask. Dr. Hemmings wants all students to understand that you are in a safe environment. When visiting, it is very important that you feel comfortable. She mentions that the first session is mostly filling out paperwork. This is to obtain information about the client. The second session is getting to know the clients and working with them fully. “This is a non-judgmental space, we do not judge, and we do not push our values on students. We work with them where they are, and help them achieve their goals”, says Dr. Hemmings. Whatever you tell your counselor is 100 percent confidential. However, if you plan to hurt yourself or someone else, then it is no longer confidential. Dr. Hemmings mentions, “Anything you tell the counselor doesn’t go anywhere, unless you say you’re going to harm yourself, someone else, or know of an elderly person, or a child being abused. Then, we are mandated reporters.”
Students come to the counseling center with different problems. One of the most frequently asked questions is, “is my situation relevant enough for counseling?” Dr. Hemmings wants all students to know that there is no such thing as “my issues aren’t big enough.” Everyone deserves support and help with
whatever they face. Everyone’s feelings are valid and important. Dr. Hemmings states, “We see everything. We see a student who is homesick, we see depression, we see anxiety, we see BPD, and we see crisis.” Dr. Hemmings also adds, “We have crisis walk-ins where students are suicidal, and we take them to the hospital. We deal with everything.” It’s amazing that our campus can help support anything a student is struggling with. It is also convenient.
Many students may ask, “what is expected during the first appointment?” Dr. Hemmings feels that this is a frequent question that is asked by students. Usually, the first session involves gathering information. It is a way of finding out what the client wants to work on in counseling. “When a student reaches out to us, they’re going to be sent some paperwork to do before they get to counseling. They’re going to fill out an assessment and the counselor will take that assessment and ask the client if they agree with those scores”, notes Dr. Hemmings. Verifying with the student on this is important to the counselors. The counselors at AUM want to help students in the best way possible. That is why it is crucial to make sure the student’s assessment scores are accurate. They want to know students’ goals and objectives. This will ensure that the student will have a successful journey using the AUM counseling services.
According to Dr. Hemmings, students can use AUM’s counseling center if they are seeing a psychiatrist from medication management. She mentions that students who see another therapist cannot utilize the services at AUM. “A student who has an outside counselor can’t be seen here, that’s just ethics because that outside counselor may be taking in a different approach than what we might use, and it can get confusing for the student”, says Dr. Hemmings. Hemmings also adds “you can come here for free, or maybe your insurance covers outside care, but we let the student decide.” It is understandable that seeing an outside therapist can be confusing for the student. Seeing two different types of counselors could either be helpful, or detrimental towards your mental health goals. Dr. Hemmings believes in letting the students make that decision.
AUM’s counseling services want students to feel comfortable. That is why having the choice to switch counselors is 100 percent welcome. “We would rather a student tell us who they prefer. If I had a student come and say, “I prefer a male counselor,” great, thank you for telling me that so we can’t get the right fit for you”, notes Dr. Hemmings. Dr. Hemmings also adds, “We want the student to continue to come to counseling. We don’t want them to feel uncomfortable and then they stop coming”. It is important to the counselors at AUM that students feel welcome and want to come back.
Dr. Hemmings touched on how students can make the most of their counseling experience. She says, “They need to feel safe and there needs to be trust between the counselors.” She stresses that attendance is how you can make the most of it. “Keep coming. Making the most out of counseling is to remember that we’re working with students to reach their goals. There are always setbacks, the key is consistency”, says Hemmings.