CAPS Workshops Teach Students to Release Anxiety, Build Relationships

A mechanical pencil thumped against a desk as Fischer Kirchoff chewed his lip, staring at the study packet in front of him. Anxiety was palpable in the air, and Kirchoff didn’t know how he could focus on studying with nerves shaking his hands.

According to the National Institutes of Health, 11.9% of college students have anxiety disorders, and 7-9% of students have symptoms of depression. Eating disorders, like bulimia and anorexia, affect 9.5% of college students.

With finals looming over the horizon, symptoms of stress and anxiety appear more often in students.

The Counseling and Psychological Services at K-State came up with a solution for students to combat these issues.

CAPS workshops are three-hour online group sessions run by therapists at K-State to deal with specific issues related to mental health and relationships.

One workshop, the Anxiety Toolbox, teaches students how to recognize symptoms of anxiety and how to treat them, according to the Anxiety Toolbox Workshop manual.

“Last year was actually terrible,” Kirchoff said. “It wasn’t very easy to reach out or get sociable motivation to make you feel like doing anything other than sitting in bed was worth it.”

Another workshop, RIO, teaches students how to handle painful thoughts and feelings more effectively, according to the RIO Workshop manual.

Other workshops include

“RIO stands for Recognition, Insight, and Openness,” Cristine Glendening, the therapist who runs the workshop, said. “It allows students to recognize big emotions without being overwhelmed by them.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control, 13% of adults in the US experienced an increase in symptoms of anxiety, and 14.8% experienced an increase in symptoms of depression during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Because of last year, people are either super over-doing it, or they become hermits,” Kirchoff said.

While individual and group therapy are both important tools, workshops provide different services for students, Glendening said.

“Workshops are about internal reflection,” Glendening said. “Workshops are for students who don’t need individual or group therapy, but still want skills to help them navigate complex emotions.”

“Not everyone is ready for the work that has to be done in individual therapy,” Kodee Walls, the Assistant Director at CAPS, said. “We want to give everyone an opportunity to take advantage of some skills and tools.”

“College students have unique needs compared to the average population of adults,” Walls said. “If the workshops can help pull a person back up to a baseline, then that could be the different between a person who had a slump, to somebody who ends up in our office having a crisis.”

CAPS workshops are located on the Lafene Patient Portal.