Story co-written with Cami Couch and edited by Keegan Wiggins
Coping is how to effectively manage something difficult going on in a person’s life. This is much easier said than done, which is why both healthy and unhealthy coping mechanisms need to be addressed for the students of WCU and the surrounding community to explore options that may not have occurred to them and could potentially save their lives or save the lives of those they love.
WCU students who spoke in the podcast. From left to right Nick Clay, Cami Couch, Cal Lockleair, Jakob Samuels, Michael Buckley and Callie Powell. Photographed by Jillian Kassor.
Listen to the the student discussion about mental health podcast (below) featuring Cal Lockleair, Callie Powell, Cami Couch, Jakob Samuels, Jillian Kassor, Michael Buckley and Nick Clay. Couch and Kassor hosted and participated in this discussion about mental health with WCU students in their junior and senior years.
The talk features honest and emotional conversations about what it means to struggle with mental health in college. These young adults delve in to details about how assignments, grades, friendships, family, romances, clubs, work, and much more goes into their mental health and how the students cope with all of these stressors.
Read below to learn more about coping methods and resources available at WCU.
Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms
Unhealthy coping mechanisms include, but are not limited to, abusing drugs and alcohol, compulsive shopping and self harm. Self harm is prevalent in adolescents and young adults. Self harm is defined by the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) as “hurting yourself on purpose.” This can include, but is not limited to, cutting and burning oneself, pulling out one’s hair or picking at wounds to prevent healing.
According to NAMI, there are many reasons why people use unhealthy coping mechanisms, such as to feel a release of pent up emotions, release endorphins or to make up for a lack of emotions and combat numbness.
Unhealthy coping mechanisms can be overcome. The first step may be one of that hardest, but the most important: reach out to a doctor, a friend, a family member or anybody you trust.
“The most unhealthy thing that students can do is to isolate themselves and not seek help from others when they are struggling. This community cares about all students and there will always be someone who is willing to assist,” Kim Gorman, director/psychologist at WCU’s Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS), said.
Traditional Coping Mechanisms
There are several traditional coping mechanisms, such as psychotherapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, behavioral activation, religious faith, intrapersonal therapy, medication and exercise.
Psychotherapy, also known as talk therapy, works to minimize or eliminate adverse behavioral symptoms. Psychotherapy can be used to treat addiction, social phobias, childhood trauma, the death of a loved one, insomnia, depression and anxiety disorders. It can be either a short-term or long-term form of treatment, depending upon the person and their situation. Treatment methods within psychotherapy consist of interpersonal therapy, dialectical behavior therapy, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy, mentalization-based therapy, psychodynamic psychotherapy and supportive psychotherapy, according to the American Psychiatric Association.
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a form of psychotherapy that emphasizes how one feels and what one does. CBT is relatively new to the psychiatric care world and is typically a short-term process. The National Association of Cognitive Behavioral Therapists have attest that CBT can be used to treat depression, anxiety, substance abuse, eating disorders and severe mental illnesses. There are a few different approaches to CBT, including exposure therapy, exposure and response prevention and mindfulness-based stress reduction.
Another traditional treatment method, medication, is meant to relieve symptoms of a person’s mental illness. Researchers believe that the symptoms of mental illness come from chemical imbalances in a person’s brain. Medications work on these chemical imbalances to reduce a person’s symptoms, or to relieve them completely. It is important to know the benefits of medications, as well as their potential side effects. Medications are not cures, they only treat symptoms, so if a person was to stop taking them, symptoms may return. Additionally, medication often help the most when part of an overall treatment plan.
Non-Traditional Coping Mechanisms
There are many non-traditional coping mechanisms, including, but not limited to, music therapy, playing video games, art therapy, reading, writing and emotional support animals.
Music therapy is a clinical and evidence based use of music to accomplish personalized goals within a therapeutic relationship between a patient and an accredited psychological professional. Music therapy is designed to aid in a patient’s wellness, help manage stress, alleviate pain, express feelings, enhance memory, improve communication and promotes physical rehabilitation.
Students at WCU have been impacted greatly by this kind of non-traditional therapy.
“I am looking to be in this field as a way to help others through music and change lives for the better. Music therapy is the perfect career for me because I love singing in intimate settings. My great grandmother had Alzheimer’s and I use to sing old jazz standards to her, that is how I got familiar with music therapy at a young age,” Abby Hershauer, senior at WCU, said.
Art therapy is a form of psychotherapy through free self-expression, for example, painting, drawing or sculpting. Art is used as an activity to aid to self-healing. Art therapy is used to improve cognitive and sensorimotor functions, self-esteem and self-awareness, emotional resilience, insight, social skills, reduce and resolve conflicts and distress and advance societal and ecological change. Art therapy engages the mind, body and spirit in kinesthetic, sensory, perceptual and alternative modes of communication.
Emotional support animals (ESAs) are companion animals that a person’s medical professional says provides some benefit for the person suffering a mental health condition or emotional disorder. There are many success stories, especially here at WCU. Having an ESA can change a person’s outlook. ESAs help produce neurotransmitters, meaning they increase dopamine and other neurotransmitters associated with raising a person’s mood. ESAs help with anxiety and stabilizing emotions, along with providing social support. Here is another personal story of a WCU ESA.
WCU Services
At CAPS, students have the chance to partake in a group counseling program called COPE. In the three sessions, students will learn tools they can use for managing emotional distress. Following the COPE series, students have the option to meet with a CAP’s clinician to discuss the student’s next steps. From there, those next steps can include another group counseling program or individual counseling.
If you are in need of help please contact CAPS at (828)227-7469 to make an appointment. If you are facing a crisis please call one of the following based on your situation:
- Appalachian Community Resources – (888)315-2880
- REACH (Sexual Violence Resources) – (828)369-5544
- National Suicide Prevention Lifeline – (800)273-8255
- Trevor Project (LGBTQIA+ Crisis Support) – (866)488-7386
