An Introduction to Individual Personal Counseling
- Feeling apprehensive? You might be wondering what will happen, how you will react, what the counselor will be like, and whether the experience will be helpful and meaningful to you.
- This page will highglight some of the benefits you can expect from counseling and offers a guideline to assist you in taking full advantage of the experience.
Why Counseling?
These are some of the signs or issues that prompt people to seek counseling:
- stress or anxiety
- depression
- academic motivation
- career choice confusion
- eating disorders
- substance abuse
- family relationship conflicts
- financial stress
- grief/loss issues
- intimacy, committment, or relationship issues
- identity concerns (e.g., ethnic/racial identity; sexual orientation, spiritual identity)
- thoughts and feelings about suicide or self-harm
- anger or thoughts of violence
Typically, people struggle with these kinds of issues internally, mulling them over in their minds trying to sort out possible solutions to their dilemmas. They may talk things over with family members and friends, but sometimes that may not feel like it's enough.
What can I expect from Counseling?
What happens in counseling depends on the unique needs and strengths of each person seeking assistance. For this reason, each counseling experience is unique, just as every individual is unique.
Typically, the first few sessions are spent clarifying the problem and examining what solutions have already been tried. This process assists the counselor in determining which counseling strategies will be most helpful to you. Once you clarify your issues, you and the counselor will delineate counseling goals.
There are many approaches to dealing with these issues. Often, the process will include learning new problem-solving or coping skills, increasing self-understanding, exploring life patterns, and gaining a better sense of how you are influenced by your surroundings.
How can I get the most out of Counseling?
- Attempt to clarify your goals, and/or what you hope to get out of the experience
- AConsider how you feel about the counseling relationship
- Be an active participant
- Focus on what is most important to you
- Recognize and express feelings
- Be patient with yourself
- Ask questions
How do I begin the process?
Step 1 -- Contact
- Call or stop by the UCTC
- We'll help you arrange an initial intake appointment with a counselor
Step 2 -- Arrival
- Arrive to your appointment 15 minutes early to fill out some paperwork
- You will need your student ID number to check-in
Step 3 -- Meet
- During the initial screening, a counselor will...
- review your situation and needs
- answer any questions you may have
- help you determine next steps
- Your counselor will take advantage of many options for counseling...
- individual or group counseling at the UCTC
- counseling in the community
- health, medical, and psychiatric referrals
- referrals to other campus resources
- referrals for specialized care
Step 4 -- Connect
- Depending upon what you and your intake counselor decide, Step 4 may look different depending on your unique situation
- For student receiving services at the UCTC, your intake counselor will help math you with a staff therapist for counseling
- Our counselors work with UO undergraduates, graduates and professional students who are experiencing a wide variety of personal, psychological, and academic problems.
Click here to learn more about accessing our services.
An Introduction to Individual Personal Counseling
- Feeling apprehensive? You might be wondering what will happen, how you will react, what the counselor will be like, and whether the experience will be helpful and meaningful to you.
- This page will highglight some of the benefits you can expect from counseling and offers a guideline to assist you in taking full advantage of the experience.
Why Counseling?
These are some of the signs or issues that prompt people to seek counseling:
- stress or anxiety
- depression
- academic motivation
- career choice confusion
- eating disorders
- substance abuse
- family relationship conflicts
- financial stress
- grief/loss issues
- intimacy, committment, or relationship issues
- identity concerns (e.g., ethnic/racial identity; sexual orientation, spiritual identity)
- thoughts and feelings about suicide or self-harm
- anger or thoughts of violence
Typically, people struggle with these kinds of issues internally, mulling them over in their minds trying to sort out possible solutions to their dilemmas. They may talk things over with family members and friends, but sometimes that may not feel like it's enough.
What can I expect from Counseling?
What happens in counseling depends on the unique needs and strengths of each person seeking assistance. For this reason, each counseling experience is unique, just as every individual is unique.
Typically, the first few sessions are spent clarifying the problem and examining what solutions have already been tried. This process assists the counselor in determining which counseling strategies will be most helpful to you. Once you clarify your issues, you and the counselor will delineate counseling goals.
There are many approaches to dealing with these issues. Often, the process will include learning new problem-solving or coping skills, increasing self-understanding, exploring life patterns, and gaining a better sense of how you are influenced by your surroundings.
How can I get the most out of Counseling?
- Attempt to clarify your goals, and/or what you hope to get out of the experience
- AConsider how you feel about the counseling relationship
- Be an active participant
- Focus on what is most important to you
- Recognize and express feelings
- Be patient with yourself
- Ask questions
How do I begin the process?
Step 1 -- Contact
- Call or stop by the UCTC
- We'll help you arrange an initial intake appointment with a counselor
Step 2 -- Arrival
- Arrive to your appointment 15 minutes early to fill out some paperwork
- You will need your student ID number to check-in
Step 3 -- Meet
- During the initial screening, a counselor will...
- review your situation and needs
- answer any questions you may have
- help you determine next steps
- Your counselor will take advantage of many options for counseling...
- individual or group counseling at the UCTC
- counseling in the community
- health, medical, and psychiatric referrals
- referrals to other campus resources
- referrals for specialized care
Step 4 -- Connect
- Depending upon what you and your intake counselor decide, Step 4 may look different depending on your unique situation
- For student receiving services at the UCTC, your intake counselor will help math you with a staff therapist for counseling
- Our counselors work with UO undergraduates, graduates and professional students who are experiencing a wide variety of personal, psychological, and academic problems.
Click here to learn more about accessing our services.