Frequently Asked Questions
- When should I seek personal counseling services?
- Sometimes you need to talk with someone who can help. How can you tell if it’s time to ask for help?
- How does counseling work?
- What about confidentiality?
- Where is the counseling service located and what are the hours?
- What can I expect during my first counseling visit?
- What if I need longer term counseling?
- How do I cancel or reschedule an appointment?
- What if I don’t think counseling is helping?
- What are the credentials held by the counseling staff?
1. When should I seek personal counseling services?
There are many situations that cause emotional stress that may interfere with your ability to perform at your best while you are studying here at CSUEB. These may include a death in the family, relationship difficulties, alcohol or drug abuse, a physical illness, sexuality issues, depression, anxiety, family difficulties, study problems, eating concerns or other challenges. In short, anything that gets in the way of you getting the most out of your experience at CSUEB or your life in general may be explored in counseling.
2. Sometimes you need to talk with someone who can help. How can you tell if it’s time to ask for help?
- When you feel like you can’t do it alone.
- When you feel trapped, like there is nowhere to turn.
- When you worry all the time, and never seem to find the answers.
- When the way you feel is affecting your sleep, your eating habits, your job, your relationships, your classes, your everyday life.
- When it’s not getting any better.
"I have tried everything I know and things keep getting worse. I am not sleeping well, my relationships are suffering, and I am not going to class regularly."
3. How does counseling work?
Counseling works by helping you objectively look at behaviors, feelings, and thoughts in situations that you find problematic. It helps you to learn more effective ways in dealing with those situations. Counseling is a collaborative effort. You and your personal counselor will identify goals, what you want to happen, and agree on how you will know when you are making progress. Progress and change can happen. Nine out of ten Americans surveyed by Consumer Reports who had participated in counseling said that counseling had helped them.
"My counselor helped me to understand and deal with my feelings and thoughts more effectively...Life is slowly getting back in balance for me."
4. What about confidentiality?
Your privacy is important. Your counselor will not disclose any information about you to others without your written permission except as required by law. That means that your family, professors, administrators, or classmates do not have any access to what you discuss in counseling. However, CaPS counselors and CaPS psychiatrists may consult with one another regarding treatment considerations on an as-needed basis. Additionally, sometimes you may decide to sign a release of information for the purpose of coordinating your care with specific individuals. Any counseling records kept will be separate from all records kept by the university.
CaPS Confidentiality Policy5. Where is the counseling service located and what are the hours?
As a registered student at CSUEB you can receive free, short-term personal counseling sessions at Counseling and Psychological Services. CaPS located in Student Health Services (the red brick building between the library and the gym). The hours are 8:30a.m. until 6:00p.m. Monday through Thursday, 8:30a.m. until 7:00p.m. on Wednesday, and 8:30a.m. until 5:00p.m. on Friday. Appointments usually last approximately 45 minutes. To make an appointment call (510) 885-3690.
6. What can I expect during my first counseling visit?
After you arrive for your first appointment, you will check in with the receptionist. You will be asked to fill out a brief background information sheet and will be given some information to read about counseling and confidentiality. During the first session your counselor will explore what issues you would like to focus on and together you can set up a plan for beginning to work on these goals. Sometimes you may set up weekly appointments with your counselor or at other times you may find appointments every two or three weeks are most helpful. You will discuss these issues with your counselor.
7. What if I need longer term counseling?
CaPS provides short term counseling. If longer term counseling is warranted, you will be referred to an appropriate provider. Your counselor may also recommend that you attend one of the groups available at CaPS. Group attendance is not limited.
8. How do I cancel or reschedule an appointment?
Call 885-3690 at least 24 hours before the appointment to cancel and/or reschedule the appointment so that others can use that appointment time. If you do not cancel in advance, the session will be counted as one of your 10 agreed upon sessions.
9. What if I don’t think counseling is helping?
During the counseling sessions, feel free to ask about the counseling process and make suggestions about what you think might be helpful to you. If you are not making progress toward your goals, discuss this with your counselor or group. You may resolve the problem together or decide on an alternative approach. Inform your counselor if you decide to stop coming to counseling. Discussing the ending of counseling can be very important and useful.
10. What are the credentials held by the counseling staff?
All counselors have earned Master’s or Doctoral degrees in counseling or clinical psychology. Pre-licensed staff, many of whom have years of experience in providing counseling, are supervised by licensed professionals. A full-time licensed Ph.D. psychologist is the director of CaPS.
