To close out suicide prevention awareness month, FAMU’s office of counseling services announced the start of weekly workshops and group counseling sessions via Zoom. The services are open to all students as long as you register online.
“Groups and workshops allow students the opportunity to practice skills that they may be having difficulty with implementing in their day to day lives,” Quantina Washington, assistant director of clinical programs and licensed mental health counselor, said.
There is a maximum capacity limit to the online sessions so that the group leaders are able to tend to and address group members’ needs more effectively.
“Smaller groups may help attendees feel more comfortable with opening up and sharing their experiences with the group,” Washington said.
When asked about the importance of holding the group sessions amid COVID-19, Washington said this was a way they were still able to stay connected with the students virtually.
“The counseling center has always offered various groups and workshops each semester, however due to COVID-19 we had to shift to providing the services virtually,” she said. “Workshops assist with skill-building while groups have a therapeutic focus and address a specific subject or skill in a supportive environment. Groups and workshops provide students with support from peers who may be experiencing similar issues, and they provide an additional outlet and support between individual therapy sessions.”
Some Rattlers appreciate the efforts the office of counseling services is making to continue the much needed counseling sessions.
One alumni who is familiar with the counseling services at FAMU hopes that the group sessions will be more beneficial than the one-on-one sessions.
“For me personally, FAMU’s counseling services did not help me the way that I expected. I felt as though the one-on-one sessions were not helpful in that oftentimes I felt unheard,” she said. “However, I do feel as though the group sessions may be beneficial because most people are able to work through their issues by being around people in similar situations. I feel it will provide this level of comfortability and understanding, which is needed during these trying times.”
From now until Nov. 12, there are “Man Talk” Thursdays where males can come together in an interactive discussion to talk about healthy masculinity in a safe environment. These sessions will be facilitated by Dougla-Khan Stancil and Marquis Stewart biweekly.
Every Thursday at 3:30 p.m. Alicia Jackson and Quantina Washington facilitate “Q & A Tea Time” where women can discuss various topics such as consent, relationships, self-care, and navigating the college experience.
Every Tuesday at noon and Thursday at 11 a.m. Teion Wells Harrison and LaToya Boyd conduct the “CBT” session, which stands for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. This session is dedicated to students who aim to improve their capacity for improved coping by “challenging and changing unhelpful distortions and behaviors.”
On Wednesdays, there are informal group discussions for students to gain information regarding sexual assault and to increase the students’ understanding of what it is like to be in the place of someone who has been victimized. These sessions will be held at 3:30 p.m. by Alicia Jackson and Marquis Stewart.
Along with the group sessions, the office of counseling services is offering a series of workshops, some lasting as long as up to four weeks, to delve into certain topics such as self esteem, decision making, anxiety, and stress management.
For more information, visit www.famu.edu/counseling.