Author Archives: Aaron Schantz

Mental Health and the Election Season: Part 2, Why Dialogue?

by Bonnie Vander Wal, Ph.D., CAPS Staff Counselor This post is the second in a series of three planned posts leading up to Election Day, 2020. CAPS staff counselor Dr. Bonnie Vander Wal writes to help the Hope Community navigate the turbulent election season with an eye on maintaining mental health. So this really happened.  […]

Mental Health and the Election Season: Part 1, Why Participate?

by Bonnie Vander Wal, Ph.D., CAPS Staff Counselor This post is the first in a series of three planned posts leading up to Election Day, 2020. CAPS staff counselor Bonnie Vander Wal writes to help the Hope Community navigate the turbulent election season with an eye on maintaining mental health. It’s that time again…  The […]

Does this sound like you, too?

by Aaron Schantz, MA, LLP, CAPS Staff Counselor In the CAPS office, we have been thinking about an article by Tara Haelle, an infectious disease journalist who, in her professional life survived a 8.0-magnitude earthquake in Peru. She begins her article with a realization that life today is harder for her than surviving that earth-shaking […]

Dear Hope community (a letter from CAPS)

Dear Hope community, As we return to campus (both physically and virtually) from the summer recess, we join the community in welcoming students back, and look forward to the ways in which we will serve the mental health needs of our campus. We strive to deliver appropriate and effective services to all of our students, […]

Finding peace through expressive writing: An old method for a new challenge!

Journaling is form of writing that is not new, but many people find helpful. Expressive writing is a specific kind of journaling, and this blog post links you to a new, guided COVID-19 resource for coping through writing out your thoughts and feelings.

A Time for Mindfulness Meditation

by Dr. Kristen Gray, Licensed Psychologist, Associate Dean for Health and Counseling, Director of CAPS It seems as though mindfulness meditation is mentioned in almost all recommendations for coping with COVID-19. But just exactly what is mindfulness meditation? Is it right for you? Are you willing to give it a try? According to Jon Kabat-Zinn, […]