Devi, a 2021 graduate of UWI St Augustine’s Faculty of Law, had been experiencing symptoms of depression and even suicidal ideation for years. She’d considered going to the campus’ Counselling and Psychological Services Department (CAPS), but hadn’t made an appointment. Then, while attending an interview for a mentorship programme, it happened.
“When one of the questions we had to answer was ‘who are you?’, I had absolutely no idea what to say and I started to panic,” she recalls. “Tears and everything – I was having a full-blown identity crisis in the middle of this room full of people. That sent me spiralling into existential confusion for maybe a week before I decided to make an appointment.”
On the surface, Devi’s story might seem rare, but numerous studies have shown that the number of people dealing with emotional and mental health challenges globally are well over 10 percent and in some societies (like the US) it is as high as 40 percent. Many (some studies show the majority) of those affected start experiencing symptoms in their teenage years into their twenties. That means many of them will have an added burden while pursuing higher education. It’s the job of CAPS to attend to the psychological needs of these students at UWI St Augustine.
“We offer direct counselling, workshops, skill-building, awareness raising, and outreach to the general campus population,” says Dr Sarah Chin Yuen Kee, coordinator of CAPS.
Many students appreciate the support they give. Prashaanta, a 25-year-old student at the Faculty of Medical Sciences, says the counselling she received at CAPS “most certainly did help”. Dealing with issues of identity and extreme difficulty with some of her relatives, she turned to counselling.
“My school president made a post about [CAPS] and sent a link to register. I didn't even hesitate to sign up because I had a really good feeling about therapy. It was my very first time taking an active role in seeking help.”
Dr Chin Yuen Kee says that interpersonal issues (with sexual partners, friends, family and others) are one the main reasons that students seek counselling. The others are mood disorders – anxiety and depression. Less common are those with what she calls “more disruptive psychological events” such as their first episode of schizophrenia or bi-polar disorder, conditions that often manifest in the early twenties.
Then there are students who have suffered trauma from a bad experience like a robbery or the loss of a family member.
“Sometimes you get high achieving students that are coping well all the time and then some personal catastrophe happens, which can derail them a bit,” explains Dr Chin Yuen Kee.
Though emotional or mental issues often manifest in the young adult years, they are not guaranteed to be solved or go away within that time frame. Jane, a mature student, has been dealing with anxiety and panic disorder for two decades. Pursuing her graduate degree in History while also teaching full-time and giving lessons, she has found therapy “very helpful”.
“This was not my first time speaking to a counsellor,” says Jane. “I had previously seen one talk therapist years ago. However, the approach my therapist uses was very different and very helpful. It gave me a more rational and empowering approach to my mental health. And her more clinical way of looking at my ‘issues’ gave me such needed perspective while also trying to teach me to look at them like that in the future.”
She adds, “The experience was so great and so needed. I often go back to my notes from those sessions in times of extreme panic/anxiety to ground myself.”
Like both Prashaanta and Jane, Devi has been helped through therapy at CAPS, saying the experience assisted her in no longer “invalidating [her] own experiences” and in recognising her own self-worth.
“It also showed me how effective and important having a game plan is, and that slow progress towards the type of life that I want to live is still progress. I learnt new coping mechanisms and how to self-regulate my emotions, which is really helpful in my day-to-day life.”
CAPS is part of UWI St Augustine’s Division of Student Services and Development (DSSD), the campus body responsible for student life and well-being. Sharing a space with the Health Services Unit (HSU) in a picturesque pocket away from much of the foot traffic, the Department has a handful therapists and an administrative staff of one.
Apart from counselling, they offer programmes like Mindful Mondays (an hour-long open session for students and staff focused on managing stress and taking part in meditation) and Safe Space (a gathering for members of the LGBTQ community and their allies). And although CAPS is mainly a resource for students, they also provide training for staff to help them identify students in distress as well as to assist them.
For students, CAPS offers a co-curricular course in peer counselling.
“We really try to educate students across the board to help each other,” says Dr Chin Yuen Kee. “We carry out many adjunct activities that are really about trying to increase mental health across campus.”
The campus, however, has been very different since March of 2020. Since then, UWI St Augustine, like all educational institutions in Trinidad and Tobago, has been closed to protect students from the COVID-19 pandemic. This has had a dramatic effect on the workings of CAPS and the students they serve.
“While COVID made my school life easier, it made my home life a lot harder,” says Prashaanta. I was day in and day out in my pajamas, feeling sad because I had to constantly be cooped up in my home. My perfect schedules were destroyed and I lost my sense of stability in life.”
As someone whose emotional challenges were family-related, being house-bound meant she had no refuge:
“I had no schedule, no one to bond with, and this led to a few months of constant depression. It became so bad I started using sleep as a form of escape from my life.”
Dr Chin Yuen Kee pointed to the role UWI plays in many students’ lives as an oasis from dysfunctional situations at home, as well as a place for much-needed socialisation.
“Whether you are in a difficult family environment, whether you are trying to work remotely, or deal with the uncertainties of university life, you also have less access to support, less access to recreation, and also to your friends,” she says.
Jane says the “lack of structure and routine has impacted my mental health and I started experiencing panic attacks and physical anxiety symptoms again”. She also points to its effects on her own students, as well as the added burden of economic uncertainty.
Although CAPS has no statistical data on the impact of COVID on students across campus, they do have statistics on student visits to CAPS. The data they have collected reveals a concerning indicator—the number of clients with suicidal thoughts. Before the lockdown, about 20 to 24 percent of clients reported such thoughts. Now?
“As of September 2020 to early June 2021, it’s 53 percent,” says Dr Chin Yuen Kee. “We have at least one in two students who are reaching out to us requiring some kind of check-in.”
Although the move to remote working has taken some adjusting, there are positives for CAPS.
“The sessions online are fine. Therapy actually works really well online,” says Dr Chin Yuen Kee.
In fact, virtual therapy has worked so well that she is considering incorporating it in the services they offer. Apart from the convenience for counsellor and client, it also allows CAPS to overcome the limitations in physical space for their five therapists to work.
There were some initial issues with the administrative aspect of their work which have been mostly fixed. The one big concern is being able to respond quickly to students in need of a check-in.
CAPS is doing their best to be proactive in meeting the students’ needs, especially in this time of isolation and instability. Dr Chin Yuen Kee advises people to pay more attention to how they are feeling and what they are thinking.
“Even pre-COVID, we have not been great at thinking about emotional health. We think about physical health. Nobody is forgetting to brush their teeth. But nobody checks in with how they are doing. What’s my energy level like? What’s my mood?” she says.
Her recommendations include remembering to relax and take part in recreation, exercise, eat well, and enforce boundaries with hours of work. Above all, she advocates for being kinder to ourselves:
“A lot more compassion and patience for ourselves is key. Your motivation and focus may not be what they used to be.”
If that’s not enough, there is also therapy. All three students have had very positive experiences with CAPS and highly recommend counselling.
“You really can’t keep everything bottled up inside,” says Devi. “Counselling, at least the way that I experienced it, is a safe space to air your thoughts and process your emotions. There is absolutely nothing selfish or shameful about seeking help if you need it.”
If you are a current student of UWI St Augustine in need of counselling or would like more information on CAPS and the services they provide, visit them online at https://sta.uwi.edu/dssd/counselling, or email them at counsellor@sta.uwi.edu.
