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Counseling Services

Confidentiality

Any and all information that students share with us remains confidential with very few exceptions, (e.g., when they represent a clear and present danger to themselves or others). Confidentiality is a basic requirement of trust in counseling and necessary to ensure its success. Our files are maintained separately and are not shared with any other office or personnel within the University. This confidentiality is safeguarded by our professional codes of conduct and by law. University officials are both cognizant of this requirement and strict regarding our compliance.

Intake Appointment

During this initial appointment, students have an opportunity to talk confidentially with a counselor about immediate concerns. The counselor will discuss with the student their reasons for attending counseling and will evaluate which services and resources might be helpful. Some students find that talking with a counselor once is sufficient to resolve immediate concerns. If further services would be beneficial, recommendations are made for services at the University Counseling Center and/or referral to another campus or community resource.

Individual and Couples Counseling

All currently enrolled Loyola University undergraduate, graduate, and law students are eligible to receive counseling services offered by the UCC free of charge. Our counseling work with students is based on a short-term, developmental model which emphasizes emotional growth through dealing with difficult life issues while also helping the students to maintain a necessary focus on academic performance. Appointments for regular counseling are typically every other week.  For couples counseling, only one partner must be currently enrolled as a student at Loyola.

Counselor On-Call

The counselor on-call is available 24/7, 365 by calling the UCC at (504) 865-3835. After hours, wait for the prompt and press 1.

Crisis Intervention

Crisis and triage appointments are available daily. In the event of a mental health crisis, call the UCC at (504) 865-3835, or stop by the Danna Center, 208 during business hours. If you need immediate emergency assistance, call LUPD at 504-865-3434. A professional staff member is on-call at all times.

Group Counseling

The University Counseling Center provides group counseling services to students who are interested in exploring an alternative option to individual counseling or who would like to be in a group in addition to being in individual counseling.

On-going groups include Anxiety Management Workshops. If you are interested in a specific group please contact the UCC for details.

Spring 2023 Group Offerings

  • Substance Redux Group

    • This group is a safe and confidential space open to all students who are seeking to change their relationship with the substances they use, whether that be to abstain altogether, reduce use, or to learn more about how their use relates to their academics, relationships, and daily functioning. This is a group for moderate users of any substance to choose what healthier use means to them through psychoeducation, mindfulness, introspection, and self-directed goal-setting. If you are interested in this group, please email dskucher@loyno.edu.

  • Grief Support Group

    • This group is for students who have experienced the death of a family member or other close relationship to share a space to discuss, process, and move through their feelings of grief and loss. This group will offer tools, resources, and activities to process grief and sadness. If you are interested in this group, please email aebales@loyno.edu.

  • A Support Group for Survivors

    • This fall the University Counseling Center is offering a group for survivors of sexual assault who are interested in connecting with others who have had similar experiences. Weekly group meetings, lasting 1.5 hours, will provide a deeper understanding of the impacts of sexual assault and explore methods for coping through education, expressive arts, and discussion. The group is grounded in the development of interpersonal connections and nurturing compassionate relationships with ourselves as a path toward healing. If you are interested in this group, please email abayer@loyno.edu.

  • Gender Spectrum Group

    • This is a confidential support group for undergraduate and graduate students who identify as transgender, nonbinary, genderqueer, gender non-conforming, agender, gender fluid, or questioning. This group provides a safe and affirming space to talk with other students about life and issues related to gender identity. Topics are based on students' interest and can include: exploring gender identity, navigating family issues, joy and gender euphoria, intersectionality, neurodivergence, gender expression, building community, representation in pop culture, navigating transition, and familial/societal/cultural expectations of self and gender. If you are interested in this group, please email proy@loyno.edu.

If you are a current client and are interested in attending group counseling, bring this up with your counselor.

If you are not a client, call the UCC to set up an intake session and make it clear that you are interested in joining a group. Since some of the groups we offer are closed (i.e., new members cannot join once the group has started) and time limited, we may not have an opening right away but we'll let you know when the next group is starting.

In group counseling, four to eight people meet face-to-face with one or two group therapists to talk about what is troubling them. Members give feedback to each other by expressing their own feelings about what someone says or does. This interaction gives group members an opportunity to try out other ways of behaving and to learn more about the way they interact with others. The importance of confidentiality (not discussing what members talk about or disclose in group outside of the group) is stressed with group members and all members sign a contract to maintain the confidentiality of the group.

Members talk about whatever is troubling them or whatever brought them into counseling in the first place. Because unexpressed feelings, fears or anxieties are a major reason why people experience difficulties in relationships, sharing your feelings in the group affects how much you will benefit from group.

First and foremost, you control what, how much, and when you share information with the group. Most people are anxious about beginning to talk in group. Within a few sessions people typically find that they are able to talk in the group and receive support from other members as they begin to share.