BYU Counseling and Psychological Services offers free Quicker Care workshops to students who seek education and tips on varying mental health topics and who may be on CAPS waitlists.
Quicker Care workshops are a new service provided to the BYU community, and they do not require students to register or RSVP. Workshops are held on campus throughout the semester and are no longer than an hour.
Lesli Allen, a CAPS counselor with 14 years of mental health counseling experience, said the Quicker Care workshops are open to all.
“We attempt to provide services for people on the waitlist and (other) students who want to come,” Allen said.
According to CAPS, the waitlist for individual counseling and group therapy varies. As of today, students who join waitlists to receive individual or group counseling will probably be seen halfway through next semester. Students seeking group therapy must first schedule an appointment with a case manager before being added to a waitlist.
Although there is a waitlist for some of BYU CAPS services, Allen explained students do not have to wait to start receiving help.
“We do have a waiting list for our therapy, but we provide so many other services where you can be seen,” Allen said.
In addition to its counseling and psychological services, CAPS also provides QuickCare consultation appointments, a free mental health screening questionnaire, student development classes, an abundance of self-help resources, biofeedback labs and crisis services.
During her presentation at the Quicker Care workshop discussing depression, Allen educated students on various free services offered through CAPs such as the WellTrack app. All BYU students have free premium access to WellTrack and can access their modules on various mental health topics and be taken through guided meditations and mindfulness activities on the app.
Mckay Smith, a BYU sophomore hoping to study nursing, shared he has benefitted from CAPS services during his time at BYU. Smith said the Quicker Care workshops can help students know what resources are available to them and to be seen.
“It’ll allow students to be seen quicker without feeling like they need to make big commitments or wait a long time to get the help they need,” Smith said.
Phillip Rash, assistant director for outreach and a licensed psychologist and counselor for CAPS, explained although attending workshops is not a substitute for mental health therapy, he hopes they can provide participants with solid information about topics and evidence-based strategies they can use to approach managing things like anxiety and depression.
At the beginning of each session, students are given surveys with questions regarding what other topics they would like to learn about.
According to Rash, CAPS hopes to add workshops on managing healthy relationships and managing perfectionism in 2024.
Future dates and locations for Quicker Care workshops are as follows and can be viewed on the BYU Counseling and Psychological Services Website
Anxiety
- Monday, Nov. 13 @ noon in HRCB 116
- Tuesday, Dec. 5 @ 1 p.m. in HRCB 150
Depression
- Thursday, Oct. 5 @ noon in MARB 129
- Wednesday, Nov. 1 @ 1 p.m. in MARB 122
- Monday, Nov. 20 @ noon in HRCB 116
- Tuesday, Dec. 12 @ 1 p.m. in HRCB 150
For in-person information and scheduling, the BYU Counseling and Psychological Services office is located at 1500 WSC.
