Having issues with a roommate? Stressing out over upcoming midterms? Fighting to not gain the freshman 15? 

Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) can help with all kinds of inner and interpersonal struggles. Don’t look for CAPS in the library though; that was temporary. 

Their new location is in the blue temporary building almost directly behind Salazar hall, officially known as building 17A. The $59 yearly CAPS fee covers up to 10 individual sessions, group therapy, crisis counseling and other services.

The office is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mon. and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tues. through Fri., with drop-in hours for 20 minute intakes from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. There may be a wait for availability, but the intake itself is just aimed at determining your needs and matching you with the right kind of therapy (group, individual or both), with the right counselor, or the right resources to serve whatever need you have. 

A 24-hour helpline is available for when life does not conveniently happen during office hours. CAPS won’t just refer a student to some national hotline. They answer local calls with local people. An on-call counselor can be reached at (707) 664-2153.

Struggles that college students face can range from debilitatingly serious like deciding between quitting school vs. being overworked between a job and classes, to seemingly frivolous but completely disruptive issues like housemate conflict. 

CAPS offers several categories and levels of assistance. There are drop-in support groups and those that require pre-registration. The pre-registration is just for a small screening process, not about a deadline to participate. Most of these groups are just getting started. Some groups cover sensitive topics and staff want to make sure students understand what the group is really geared toward and be confident that confidentiality will be maintained.

CAPS provides crisis counseling, one session therapy, relationship therapy–not just for romantic partners because friends and roommates are relationships, too–ongoing individual therapy, and workshops. They even do consultations when a student is inquiring about a situation they want to help with but are not necessarily the one with the problem. For example, maybe a housemate is exhibiting signs of being suicidal and someone wants to know how to approach them in an appropriate way.

Students can even find support for life-altering decisions or situations–like questioning their sexuality or gender identity, discovering an unexpected pregnancy, or drug use that suddenly went from weekend recreation to daily essential existence.

Susan Pulido serves as the center’s Victim’s Advocate. She can be reached at 707-664-2698. “The Victim’s Advocate provides confidential advocacy support, victim outreach, coordination of support services, problem-solving, and assistance with decision-making to SSU students who are impacted or victimized by traumatic, disruptive, or disturbing life events (i.e., sexual assault, intimate partner violence, stalking, abusive relationships, hate crimes, etc.) The Advocate supports SSU students through the process of physical, emotional, and financial recovery,” said CAPS’ website.

Counseling and psychological services are provided by post-master’s degree professionals, not interns like some community-based counseling services. A range of spiritual practices and lifestyles are represented and supported at CAPS..

Some of the current therapy groups meeting this semester include: Women’s Process/Support Group (pre-registration required), Mon. 2-3 p.m., Not the Perfect Family Group (drop-in), Tues. 5-6 p.m., “I Want to Know What Love Is:” A Relationship Support Group (pre-reg.), Wed. 11 a.m.-12 noon, Womxn of Color Collective (drop-in), Wed. 12-1 p.m. at the HUB, Student Center 2020, and Building Connections for Men Group (drop-in), Wed. 12-1 p.m. 

Full descriptions of groups and all other services can be found on the CAPS website at web.sonoma.edu/counselingcenter and clicking on the “Counseling Services” drop down menu on the sidebar. A wider range of off-campus services can be found by clicking on “Resources” in the sidebar menu.