Blog

By Kearisten Gaines, M.A. 

By Chelsea Latorre, M.Ed.

How are those New Year’s Resolutions holding up this time of the year? Are you having trouble keeping your goals on track? How often do you feel guilty or upset with yourself that you are not meeting your goals? Do you need help narrowing and refining your goals to meet you where you are at today, in this moment, and not back in January of this year?

By: Seth Haxel

The transition to college is difficult under the best of circumstances, which is why the orientation process here at WVU for incoming students is designed to make the transition from high school to college as smooth as possible.  But what about the student who aren’t coming directly from high school? Or the students who started college and are coming back after time off to finish their degree or get a second degree?  These students, among others, make up a population called non-traditional students.

By: Chelsea Latorre, M.Ed.

Eating disorders are psychological disorders associated with irregular eating habits and extreme distress about body weight and/or shape. They are impacted by biological, psychological, and social factors in our everyday lives and can have serious health consequences.

The most common types of eating disorders are anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder. Individuals with anorexia nervosa typically engage in self-starvation and demonstrate significant weight loss. Individuals with bulimia nervosa typically experience episodes of binge eating followed by compensatory behaviors (such as purging or excessive exercise) to counteract episodes of binge eating. Individuals with binge eating disorder typically experience recurrent episodes of binge eating in which they feel out of control and without regular use of compensatory behaviors.

By: Chelsea Latorre, M.Ed.

Do you ever catch yourself talking negatively about yourself? Judging your behaviors? Responding harshly to the moods, behaviors, or thoughts you have? Thinking about something in the past and wishing you had done something differently? Or, maybe, focusing on the future and trying to make sure that you don’t make the same mistakes that made you feel as terribly as you feel in these moments?

By Alex Kinder

According to Forbes Magazine , there are nearly 2,500 online dating services in the United States vying for space amongst the 90 million single people between the ages of 19 and 45.  During a national survey of about 5,000 college students, ABODO posted that nearly 91.1% of college students are utilizing an online dating service, with 84.4% of them endorsing Tinder as their most used online dating service. Not only are college age students (18-30) downloading online dating apps and creating a profile, they are frequenting the apps an estimated ten hours a week. This post will focus on  healthy ways to navigate online dating, as well as research and statistics about college student use of online dating services.

By Kate Fairhurst

Technology is an interesting thing. In many ways, it has opened doors and advanced our understanding of mental health on a global scale. On the other hand, there is mounting evidence that technology - particularly the Internet and Internet-based platforms such as social media sites and smartphone apps - can have negative effects on mental health in a variety of ways. Some research suggests a link between social media use and mental health concerns such as anxiety and depression. Beyond that, there are indirect effects like the effect of screen use (and brightness) on sleep quality (something every college students can never get enough of, amirite?). I think the major thing to keep in mind here is the old adage “everything in moderation”. Not only that, but as the stigma of mental health has been decreasing, major tech companies have been harnessing their brain power to figure out ways to use technology and apps to help improve the mental health of today’s generation.

By Taylor Allen, MS

Going home for the holidays can be a great time to see family and friends you haven’t seen in a while. There are home cooked meals, readily available washers and dryers, and potentially a room all to yourself with no roommates/dormmates!

December 3rd is International Day of Persons with Disabilities. Each year, the United Nations announces a theme to observe and this year’s focus is on empowering persons with disabilities and ensuring inclusiveness and equality. Here at the Carruth Center and along with other departments on West Virginia University campuses, we place importance on empowering individuals and creating a sense of equality and inclusivity. 

At the Carruth Center, we often meet with students who are struggling academically and our office help students get connected to the Office of Accessibility Services. The Office of Accessibility Services helps improve a student’s academic success through arranging appropriate accommodations. Our staff also meet with students referred by accessibility specialists to receive appropriate documentation to meet the minimum requirements to obtain accommodations. Read on to learn how to effectively navigate the process to obtain accommodations through OAS, the Carruth Center and other applicable resources.