Mental Health Services

By your first or second session you should have:

• • 	An understand of mental health services at Grossmont College
    	An understand of mental health services at Grossmont College
    	Begun working on goals/hopes for therapy & have discussed where you hope to be when services end
    	Identified something to work on outside of session

Remember, solving problems takes work, both inside & outside of session!  The action needed for change can feel uncomfortable and sometimes hard but we are here to support you through that.  We hope you can feel proud of your willingness to look at what needs to change internally & externally to get unstuck!

The following prompts might be helpful as you embark on this growth journey:

• 	What do I wish my life/mood/relationships looked like?
  	What resources or strengths do I need to improve my life, my circumstances, my mood, my outlook, or my relationships?
  	How might I contribute to my own problems and what am I willing to change about my thoughts & behaviors?

The short answer is no. The standard practice for all therapists is to not duplicate services. This is because it is generally not in the client’s best interest to have two different providers managing their care and it actually slows progress (reasons include: advice from two therapists may be conflicting, client may not remember who they have told what, therapists would need to be in close communication with each other and this is usually not possible unless they work for the same organization, etc.).

Of course there are some exceptions. For example, if you are getting medication from a psychiatrist in the community but this person does not provide talk therapy, then it would be appropriate to have both providers. Or, if you are not getting the care you need from your current therapist, we would work with you to terminate services with that therapist before starting treatment at Grossmont. Another example would be someone who has a couple’s therapist who is treating them and their partner, but they are looking to establish services as an individual; in this case it would be appropriate to have both providers.

If you need to cancel or reschedule, please call our front desk at (619) 644-7192 or email your specific counselor as soon as you realize you cannot make it. If you completely miss your appointment and realize it after the fact – that’s okay – it happens! But please reach out as soon as you can to reschedule. We will not contact you to reschedule; it will be your responsibility. Keep in mind that if you “no show” three or more times you may not be allowed to schedule any more sessions for the current semester. If you are having trouble keeping your regular appointment times please discuss this with your counselor.

Mental health services at Grossmont are considered short term. The average student attends 6 to 8 sessions but each student and each story is different. Some students find they only need a few sessions to gain new perspective; others have more to work through and might do more than the typical 6 to 8 sessions.

We want you to know our limitations up front. Because we are a college counseling center, we operate during normal business hours and we are closed on weekends and holidays; and we only see students currently enrolled in classes. We typically see students every other week (two times per month). If you need an acute level of care (for example, weekly sessions for more than a year or access to 24/7 support), we will make every effort to help you find that in the community.

Also, please know that if you have already had an entire semester of therapy you may be moved to monthly check-ins or a wait list for continued sessions in later semesters. We wish we had the capacity to provide long term care to all of our students but we are staffed and resourced only for short term treatment.

If you are in need of mental health care or if you feel that you are in crisis. Call the San Diego Access & Crisis line at 1-888-724-7240 or text “courage” to 741741. 

As for knowing when it’s time to “graduate” from therapy, these questions might help.

Are the issues I came in for more manageable?  Have I gained new skills to deal with life's stressors?

While I may still be suffering, do I feel like I can handle or am more equipped to handle my problems?

Do I have a better understanding of who I am and why I make the choices I make?

Am I thriving (vs. just surviving)?

You may have heard the term, “process over content.” What this means is that a therapist is more concerned with the process of what’s going on with you than the content of what’s going on with you. For example, when discussing a recent argument with your significant other, your friend might be more interested in the details (Let me see the text stream! He said what?!, Show me the post!); while your therapist is going to want to know how you felt about it, how you came to certain conclusions or made certain decisions, how you are healing, what you learned from it, what steps you are taking
since, how you were able to stay calm or why you became angry.

It is certainly appropriate and normal to share the details or content of your life, but be prepared for the emphasis to be on understanding the process of what goes on for you internally during your everyday behaviors and interactions. You will find that this feels different than venting to a friend or simply reporting what happened.

If you need to contact your therapist about scheduling changes, email is the best way to get ahold of them. The phone is a
little trickier because most of our therapists are not in the office everyday, and if they are in the office, they are usually in
session. However, you are more than welcome to call our front desk and leave a message for your therapist at (619) 644-
7192.