Accessible and affordable. Something that all students could use to our advantage, yet we often look the other way when mental health services are being talked about.
Or maybe that’s just what I did.
When I first heard about the UNK Counseling services, I had multiple thoughts starting with, “maybe seeing someone would be nice,” which quickly turned into:
“I don’t need to see a therapist.”
“My problems aren’t big enough to seek help.”
“It’s going to be awkward sitting in a room with a stranger.”
“I can figure this out on my own.”
Why did I have such a negative connotation around talking to someone about my feelings? Was it a cultural thing, or was it something I was conditioned to growing up? Was it the fear of being vulnerable? Or something else?
For me, I always thought that one needed to have something severely wrong with them to seek help — that talking about your pain was a sign of weakness. It wasn’t until I started reading the book, “Atlas of the Heart,” by Brene Brown that I started to understand that working on my mental health was no different than working on my physical health.
And on that note, I was under the impression that I was only halfway healthy.
I play volleyball, which leads me to working out almost every day. I do my best to get the daily servings of fruits and vegetables, yet I was standoffish when talking to someone to work on my mental side of life. That is when I realized I wanted to get better.
Throughout the time that I have been seeing a therapist, it has been a great way for me to talk through things that I have been closed off to. Whether that be stressors in everyday life or things from my past, having someone listen to what I had to say and give me tools to work through my thoughts has been more than helpful.
The UNK Counseling center is open to everyone who’s enrolled through the university. As students, we get our first three sessions free and after that, it’s a $10 copay. If that doesn’t work for someone, the counseling center will help them financially.
From my overall experience, I am not here to tell others that they need to go to a therapy session. I am here to tell others that sometimes I think we put too much pressure on ourselves and each other, so if students are ever interested, it might be something worth their while.
Sometimes it’s refreshing to try something new.
