Counseling Services
Welcome to Counseling Services
Counseling Services is located on the ground floor of Gardiner Hall and is accessed through the Health Center. We are staffed by three full-time licensed clinical social workers from 8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Appointments can be scheduled by completing an online request form through RamPulse. For Emergency Mental Health needs between 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., contact the Health Center by calling 304-876-5161.
Appointments
Click here for Online Request Form for Counseling Appointment
Click Here for Group Counseling Opportunities
Our Purpose
- Support students in overcoming specific personal, interpersonal, or educational problems.
- Provide opportunities for students to develop self-management, problem solving, and leadership skills.
- Motivate students to reduce harmful behavior and increase healthy, life-affirming behavior.
- Provide education, assessment, and consultative services in the areas of mental health and well-being.
Free confidential counseling is available on campus to all students. We focus primarily on short-term counseling. Referrals to outside agencies for more extensive or comprehensive services are also available; however, Shepherd University will not assume the cost for these outside services.
In case of a life-threatening emergency, call 911, or 9-911 from a campus phone. Always notify your resident assistant of an emergency if you live on campus.
Each illness has its own symptoms, but common signs of mental illness in adults and adolescents can include the following. If you are experiencing these symptoms, please seek mental health support.
- Excessive worrying or fear
- Feeling excessively sad or low
- Confused thinking or problems concentrating and learning
- Extreme mood changes, including uncontrollable “highs” or feelings of euphoria
- Prolonged or strong feelings of irritability or anger
- Avoiding friends and social activities
- Difficulties understanding or relating to other people
- Changes in sleeping habits or feeling tired and low energy
- Changes in eating habits such as increased hunger or lack of appetite
- Changes in sex drive
- Difficulty perceiving reality (delusions or hallucinations, in which a person experiences and senses things that don’t exist in objective reality)
- Inability to perceive changes in one’s own feelings, behavior or personality (”lack of insight” or anosognosia)
- Overuse of substances like alcohol or drugs
- Multiple physical ailments without obvious causes (such as headaches, stomach aches, vague and ongoing “aches and pains”)
- Thinking about suicide
- Inability to carry out daily activities or handle daily problems and stress
- An intense fear of weight gain or concern with appearance
If you are responding to a distressed student, use ALGEE from Mental Health First Aid:
- Assess for risk of suicide or harm: Ask direct questions and if the person is at risk for harm, seek professional help immediately. You can call 911, go to the nearest emergency room, or call a crisis line.
- Listen non-judgmentally: Use empathy and listen carefully with an open mind to what is being said.
- Give reassurance and information: Offer encouragement and emotional support, as well as practical steps or resources.
- Encourage appropriate professional help: Mental health needs treatment for better recovery outcomes, such as talk therapy, medication, family support, vocational support, and so on. Let them know there is assistance available.
- Encourage self-help and other strategies: Encourage the person to use self-help strategies or seek support from family, friends, and others. Peer support locally or online can also be a resource.
24 Hour Crisis Lines
- EastRidge Health Systems: 304-263-8954 or 855-807-1258
- Berkeley Health Center Emergency Psychiatric Services: 304-350-3338
- National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-TALK
- Trans Lifeline: 877-565-8860
Find a Therapist in Your Local Community
Request a Mental Health Presentation
Watch Wellness Wednesday Videos