I was the kid who struggled to ask for hot sauce packets at Taco Bell. I would cry and beg my mom not to make me do it. The silly thing about anxiety is that it makes you feel like you’ve just jumped out of a plane or seen a bear in your house when all you have to do is make a phone call.
This was my dilemma during my first couple years at Long Beach State—I was struggling with anxiety and depression, but the anxiety hindered my ability to do anything about it. Deep down, I wanted to see a professional, but on the surface I couldn’t bring myself to go through the misery of a series of phone calls and appointments that may not even be successful.
Luckily for me (and unluckily for the greater state of the world), COVID-19 had forced a lot of CSULB operations online. This meant that I didn’t have to walk into an office, just press some buttons on my phone to sign up for a virtual intake meeting at CAPS.
CAPS, Counseling and Psychological Services, is a program at Cal State Long Beach that offers mental health services to students. CAPS is for everyone—you don’t need to be struggling with anything specific and your hardships can be situational. Maybe you’d just like to be more organized or fix your sleep schedule. Talk to anyone who has used CAPS resources and they will all give you a very different story of why they went and how they were assisted.
Some people might be deterred from using CAPS because they think it is just for short-term therapy. However, I used the program for referral and case management services. In my case, I was seeking long-term psychological counseling, so I wanted to commit to someone I could stick with rather than using my limited number of CAPS sessions.
I expressed this goal during my intake appointment and was referred to a CAPS worker who could help me find therapists within my insurance network. They also joined the phone line with me whenever I had to call an office to check for availability. When I froze up, the CAPS worker would step in and advocate for me.
If you find yourself in a similar place to mine a couple years ago, you have options. CAPS is available in-person or via phone call. If a phone call is too intimidating, find someone you’re close to who can sit with you or even make the call for you.
I went from feeling panicked any time I had to make a Zoom call to giving training presentations to the Daily Forty-Niner staff. This improvement is due to my work in therapy, which is ultimately a result of the compassionate staff at CAPS who made finding a therapist possible for me. You deserve to be supported as you navigate challenges, however those might look for you. CAPS can help.