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This article is designed to give you some useful techniques in dealing with distressed or difficult students. Included in this guide are brief descriptions and comments on possible interventions and referral resources.

A crisis situation occurs when the student feels unable to cope with what is occurring in his/her life. The more helpless the individual feels, the greater the crisis. As a result of the crisis situation, the student may feel depression, anxiety, hostility or shame.

If you encounter a student experiencing a crisis, there are a number of helpful actions that you can take. Remember that throughout, it will be important for you to know how far you are willing to work with the student and convey when that limit has been reached. It is important to help the student discuss the situation and his/her feelings. Let the student know that you hear the concern. You have probably been approached because he/she trusts you. Finally, assist the student in exploring the situation or problem and deciding what course of action needs to be taken. Knowing appropriate referral sources can be most handy. Some are discussed within this article.

Overall, when dealing with most students in crisis situations, conveying your concern and willingness to help in any way you can (including referral) is probably the most important thing you can do. Your support, encouragement and reassurance will be particularly valuable to a student in crisis.

We have all experienced some of the symptoms of depression. However, when depression lasts for more than a couple of weeks this may be a sign of clinical depression which is a serious health problem that affects the total person.

The depressed student may feel guilty or angry at him/herself, have trouble concentrating or remembering, lose interest in schoolwork or usual activities, or feel worthless or inadequate. Physical symptoms include changes in appetite (usually a decreased interest in eating), difficulty sleeping (usually trouble falling asleep or intermittent waking during the night), and low energy level (everything is an effort). The more depressed student will convey a greater sense of helplessness and hopelessness, may have a hard time thinking clearly or recognizing their own symptoms, or difficulties asking for help. For many people a combination of psychological therapy and medication is beneficial.

Suicide is a topic a seriously depressed student may have considered. It is important to view all suicidal comments as serious and appropriate referrals should be made. A few facts about suicides:

Additional resource: ULifeLine

If you encounter a depressed student, the following actions may be helpful.

The following actions may not be helpful to the student.

This student may have trouble distinguishing fantasy from reality. To some extent, this person will appear confused or illogical.

Many times, as you talk to this student, you may notice that his/her speech jumps from one topic to another with little or no logical relationship between the topics. This student may also pay a great deal of attention to some unimportant detail that is being discussed or may be generally scattered and incoherent. The student may coin new words and expect others to understand their meaning or may put words together because they rhyme, not because they make grammatical sense.

The student may make inappropriate emotional responses. For example, he may overreact to his feelings, or display no facial expression at all. Many times the person knows that his emotions are inappropriate, but just feels overwhelmed and cannot control them.

Students in poor contact with reality may experience themselves as especially powerful or important or may believe that people are attempting to harm or control them in some way. They may also feel that certain actions have special meaning for them (e.g., when people in a small group begin to laugh they are laughing at him).

This student may hear, see, smell, or even feel things that do not exist.

When interacting with someone who is having trouble staying in touch with reality, the following may be helpful:

The following will be less helpful to the student with poor reality contact:

Aggression can take many forms from very subtle passive acts, to violent outbursts.

Aggression is the result of being frustrated and feeling out of control. Some aggressive people express hostility immediately without regard for their circumstances or the people around them. Other aggressive students express their hostility through explosive outbursts and the rest of the time deny their anger and frustration. Many times students who are verbally or physically aggressive feel inadequate and use the hostile behavior as a way to build up their self-esteem. Often they feel that you will reject them so they become hostile and reject you first to protect themselves from being hurt. They may see you as attempting to control then and lash out to try and gain a sense of control.

It is important to remember that the student is generally not angry with you personally, but is angry at her world and you are the object of the pent-up frustrations. This behavior is often associated with the use of alcohol and/or other substances. Alcohol & Drug Counseling, Assessment, and Referral Services

The following may be helpful guidelines in dealing with the aggressive student:

The following will not be helpful in dealing with a hostile student.

Overall, dealing with an aggressive student will be facilitated if you set up your environment to be as safe as possible, (e.g., a physical barrier, etc.), and maintain firm, consistent control in the situation (i.e., know what you are doing and what your goals are).

We have all experienced anxiety in response to a perceived stressful situation. Anxiety becomes heightened as the situation becomes more vague and less familiar.

A panic attack is an overwhelming sense of dread and fear. Some of the physiological components of general anxiety and a panic attack are: rapid heart palpitations, chest pain or discomfort, choking, dizziness, sweating, trembling or shaking, or cold clammy hands. The student may experience feelings of worry, fear, and anticipate some misfortune. He/she may complain of difficulty concentrating, being always on edge, or easily distracted, having memory distortions, or trouble sleeping. The student may also state unreasonably high self-expectations, and be very critical of his/her present performance. This student may constantly think about and discuss his/her problems and possible solutions, but be too fearful to take action.

The following may be helpful in dealing with an anxious student:

The following will not be helpful in dealing with an anxious student:

Sexual harassment is unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors and other verbal or physical conduct; it is usually found in the context of a relationship of unequal power, rank or status. It does not matter that the person's intention was not to harass. It is the effect it has that counts. As long as the conduct creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive learning or work environment, it is considered sexual harassment.

Sexual harassment usually is not an isolated one-time-only case, but a repeated pattern of behavior. It can include:

A common reaction by a student who has been harassed is to doubt perceptions. Was he/she serious or joking? Did it really happen? More critical, a student will query: What did I do to make this happen? The student may begin to participate less in the classroom, drop or avoid classes, or even change majors.

What would be helpful:

What would not be helpful:

Sexual assault is the most common and most under-reported violent crime on college campuses today. The victims experience difficulty concentrating, sleeping and eating; they often feel guilt and shame. Many times they not only don't report the crime, they don't even tell their friends. However, as a trusted faculty advisor, you may be the first person to whom someone turns for help and information. The following is provided to assist you in that role.

If you are contacted by a victim of sexual assault at Central Washington University , we recommend the following:

Typically, the utmost time and energy given to this student is simply not enough. He/she often seeks to control your time and unconsciously believes that the amount of time received is a reflection of personal worth. In many instances, these people feel incompetent to handle their own life. Usually they are immature and self-centered.

When dealing with this type of student, it is important to set clear and precise limits with them and stick to the limits no matter how much the student protests. Also, it is important to let the student, to the extent possible, make his/her own decisions. Don't take responsibility for them. If you do, they may attempt to trap you into solving more and more of their life problems. It is important not to let them use you as their only source of support. Refer them to other students in class, their friends or some particular group on campus.

Usually these students complain about something other than their psychological difficulties. They are tense, cautious, mistrustful, and have few friends. These students tend to interpret minor oversight as significant personal rejection and often overreact to insignificant occurrences. They see themselves as the focal point of everyone's behavior and everything that happens has special meaning. Usually they are overly concerned with fairness and being treated equally. They project blame onto others and will express anger in round-about ways. Many times they feel worthless and inadequate.

In dealing with this student, it is important to send clear, consistent messages regarding what you are willing to do and what you expect. Express compassion without intimate friendship. Remember, suspicious students have trouble with closeness and warmth. It would not be helpful to be overly warm or nurturing or to assure the student you are his/her friend. Let him/her know that you can still be concerned, without being intimate.

Alcohol is the most widely used substance on campus. It is common to find alcohol abusers in college populations also abusing other drugs, both prescription and illicit. Patterns of use are affected by fads and peer pressure. Currently, alcohol is the preferred drug on college campuses.

The effects of alcohol on the user are well known to most of us. Student alcohol abuse is most often identified by faculty when irresponsible, unpredictable behavior affects the learning situation (i.e., drunk and disorderly in class). More subtle effects are unexplained drop in grades, irregular school attendance, desire to be secretive or isolative, decreased interest in school, social activities, sports and hobbies and mood changes such as irritability and hostility.

In faculty or staff interventions with this type of student, it is important to express your concern about the student not in terms of suspicions about alcohol and other drugs, but in terms of specific changes in behavior or performance.

Denial and impaired judgment are central characteristics of alcohol/drug abuse. Where confronting the abuse will elicit denial, confronting unsatisfactory performance (Kate, you are failing this class and I don't understand why?) can lead to a positive student response. It is then appropriate to refer to the possibility of alcohol and other drug problems, and suggest that the student talk with someone about these issues (see list of referral resources). The treatment of alcohol and other drug abuse is best provided through long term, intensive community resources. Support and concern is very appropriate when related to the student's willingness to address the problem. Maintaining contact with the student after referral can also be helpful.

You may also refer students to Gail Farmer at Wildcat Wellness Center (963-3214) for a substance abuse evaluation, information and support Wildcat Wellness Center.

When you discuss a referral to counseling or other psychological services, it would be helpful for the student to hear in a clear, concise manner your concerns and why you think counseling would be helpful. You might also tell them a few facts about counseling and psychological services. For instance, all services at the Counseling Center are free to regularly enrolled students; there is a counselor available to see students Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Tuesday and Thursday from 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. . All discussions are held confidential except when the student presents a danger to him/herself or others. Counseling Center confidentiality statement.

Having the student call for an appointment increases his/her responsibility and commitment to come in for counseling. There may be some times, however, when it is more advantageous for you to call or walk the student over to make an appointment for him/her (e.g., the student is in crisis).

Staff is available daily for consultation. If you have any questions regarding referral or counseling services, please feel free to give us a call at 963-1391. The Counseling Process

There may come a time when you wish to refer a student to a service on or off campus. The following are guidelines that may facilitate the referral process.

Refer a student when:

Washington State

*We would like to extend special thanks to California State University Humboldt, whose Resource Book served as our model.

Counseling Services Links Confidentiality Counseling Center Staff Faculty Guide to: Assisting the Emotionally Troubled Student (A resource guide). Groups/Workshops Pre-Doctoral Internship Useful Resources