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Individual Counseling (Short-Term)

CAPS offers brief or short-term individual counseling for students who are ready to commit to going a little deeper into reasons for their current difficulties. Short-Term counseling is different from long-term or open-ended therapy in the sense that it is focused on specific issues and helps you make progress toward resolving an issue in a short time span. At CAPS we typically think of this time span as 1 semester or less, and we typically meet with you for appointments that are scheduled every two weeks.

The fact that short-term counseling is goal-oriented means that it is not simply a place to “vent” or talk about the stressful events of the week. Instead, it is a collaborative effort to examine potential causes or reasons for your distress so you can increase your self-awareness and make changes in your life. Short-term therapy may involve an exploration of feelings, thoughts, or memories that you normally push away and will require self-reflection and active participation throughout the process.

While short-term counseling can be highly effective and rewarding, it is not for everyone. For those who prefer to learn techniques or skills they can implement right away, we recommend one of our Essential Skills Workshops.

Also, for those who need more ongoing support or more frequent sessions than brief therapy can offer, CAPS can help facilitate referrals to other therapists in the community who can provide longer-term or more frequently scheduled therapy sessions.

Short-Term Counseling may be a good fit for you if:

  • You are interested in actively exploring and addressing the reasons why you are unhappy, rather than simply vent your frustrations to someone.
  • You don’t quite understand why you are feeling the way you are.
  • You have specific goals you can work on in a short time-frame, but don’t really know where to begin.
  • You are ready to confront issues, look inward, and explore your life.

How to Access Services:

The first step in getting connected to services is to call us for a free brief assessment with a counselor who will discuss your needs and connect you to the service that is most likely to help you. Read more about your access visit.