Breathe Coffee House is sponsoring an new program called Can We Just Talk? to help students who need a kind ear.
By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
FHSU's Kelly Center is seeing an influx of students seeking mental health services, and a new program is seeking to help students who just need someone to talk to.
During the 2014-15 school year, the Kelly Center had 1,950 appointments. In the 2018-19 school year, that jumped to 4,120, said Gina Smith, Kelly Center director and licensed master level psychologist.
Smith said depression and anxiety are the most common student complaints.
Some FHSU students experience isolation as they move away from their families and support systems. Smith said social media may be contributing to that isolation.
"I think they look at social media. They see all the things that are happening in the world, and that can be a stressor," she said. "They also see other people on social media, and they compare themselves to them. They feel they fall short in life. They see someone take a trip, and they think they don't have financial problems."
Smith said students are not engaging face to face. When they are between classes, they are on their phones instead of talking to each other.
Volunteers are meeting with strangers for a free cup of coffee and conversation through the Can We Just Talk? program at Breathe Coffee House.
Patrick McGinnis of Breathe Coffee House and a group from the FHSU Leadership 310 course are seeking to meet some of this growing need from students with the Can We Just Talk? program.
The program is set up so individuals who just need a friendly ear, can pick up a free coffee coupon from the Kelly Center, other sources on campus or at Breathe. When they present the coupon, the staff at Breathe will connect the person with a trained volunteer onsite who is willing to listen. Anyone who needs more intense clinical help is referred to a professional.
The Wonder Women League as well as other sponsors donated funds for the coffee coupons.
Although the program is open to all people in the community, McGinnis and Leadership 310 have initially focused on students.
McGinnis said the program can be helpful for students who are struggling with a particular issue, but might not need clinical help. Smith said the Kelly Center is also referring students to the program between clinical appointments.
Sixty percent of the success of clinical treatment is dependent on clients feeling their therapists care, McGinnis said.
"We don't have to create a whole bunch more people who can do therapy," he said. "We need to find people who actually care."
McGinnis said Hays has people who care. Within two days of announcing the program on Facebook, the program's post had almost 10,000 views and 30 people had volunteered to be listeners in the program.
The goal of the nonprofit McGinnis formed with Breathe as the hub is to create a space where people can talk face to face.
Breathe hosted a series of dialogues on important topics in the community, including mental health.
"What had come out of those mental health conversations and dialogues is there is an epidemic of mental health issues," McGinnis said, "not only here, but throughout our nation, especially in young people. Depression, anxiety and suicide rates are all at all-time highs."
Leadership 310 students and program volunteers seniors Lincoln Ector and Spencer Kochanowski said they see the program as needed. The volunteers participated in training offered by the Kelly Center on empathy and suicide prevention.
Ector, who is from Hays, said he did not feel some of culture shock new students to Hays might feel, but he could see that isolation among his fellow students, especially in his general education courses.
"You can almost tell when you walk into a room. The person's body language — they are slouched down looking at their paper. They don't want to look up at you. They don't want to talk. They never talk in class," Ector said.
Kochanowski said when you get into classes in your major, you start having classes with the same people and become closer with your classmates.
Kochanowski, a psychology major who plans to continue in the clinical psychology grad program, said once he started joining campus groups in his second semester, he started meeting more people.
However, the volunteers noted some students struggle with finding those connections. Although the program is just getting off the ground and has not had high usage yet, the volunteers said the common issue among the students thus far has been anxiety and stress revolving around academics.
McGinnis said he hopes to pair people through the program who have common experiences.
"If I have 30 people signed up, I surely have one person who has dealt with cancer," he said. "I could eventually ask them those facts or they would tell us that, and we would have that as part of who they are.
"So when someone walks through the door, and they are dealing with someone in their family who has cancer, I can say, 'You really need to talk to Jody. She's here on Thursdays.' "
The program will have volunteers on hand at Breathe during finals. They will have a group Can We Just Talk ? event between 7 and 9 p.m. Sunday at Breathe.
During the fall semester, volunteers were on hand Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays and Saturdays. However, if you come into Breathe anytime, the staff will be able to let you know when a volunteer will be available.
If you would like to volunteer, you can contact McGinnis at [email protected].
McGinnis said fear of talking to a stranger is a barrier to students further utilizing the program.
One student told his volunteer, he drove around the coffee house for 20 minutes with his Can We Just Talk coffee coupon on his hand before he had the nerve to come in and use it.
McGinnis said he hoped having some group discussion will help further break down barriers and help people fell more comfortable talking one on one.
McGinnis himself has gone back to school and is seeking a degree in counseling from FHSU. He hopes to serve his practicum in the Can We Just Talk? program at the coffee house. He is in talks with High Plains Mental Health to engage more people in the community in the program.
Smith said she also hoped the program will continue to grow.
"I think the program can be beneficial to college-age students and really beneficial to community of Hays," Smith said. "As it moves into the community, I think we can look at connecting people at FHSU and in the community in general. Hopefully, it grows. I am encouraging our staff to hand the out the cards."