Mental Health Crises Involving NYU Students

Ours is an academic environment, devoted to scholarship, teaching, and learning.  NYU’s approach to the health of our students is one of “wellness”: supporting students in all aspects of their lives in order to enable them to achieve academic success.  We believe this approach works well for our campus. 

However, the demands of academic life, coupled with work, family, community, and personal responsibilities can create a stressful environment for students.  We know how devoted and concerned our faculty and staff are about the well-being of our students, and we want to provide you with guidance on how to respond in cases of student mental distress.

Wellness Exchange

We believe students often can benefit from professional help in understanding and adjusting to the changes they are experiencing and coping with problems they may encounter.  Our principal mechanism to provide access to these services is the Wellness Exchange.  The Wellness Exchange is NYU's extensive network of health and mental health resources. 

• Athletics, Intramurals & Recreation
• Office of LGBT Student Services
• Moses Center for Students with Disabilities
• Residential Education
• Student Health Center
• Student Resource Center

A 24/7 hotline (212-443-9999) centrally links all of these services and puts students in touch with professionals who can help them address day-to-day challenges as well as other health-related concerns including medical issues, academic stress, depression, sexual assault, anxiety, alcohol and other drug dependence, sexually transmitted infections, and eating disorders.  The Wellness Exchange can provide assistance in both emergency and non-emergency situations.

The Wellness Exchange provides a variety of entry points to its services to accommodate student choice.  Students can seek counseling by appointment at the Counseling Service, by calling the Wellness Exchange hotline, or by using walk-in services located at the Student Health Center (726 Broadway). Counseling is also available within some of the schools in offices located in school buildings.

• CAS - Silver Center, Rm 920 (ext 88140)
• GSP - 726 Broadway, 6th Floor (ext 87096)
• Gallatin - 715 Broadway, Rm 619 (ext 87353)
• Steinhardt - Pless Hall, 2nd Floor (ext 85061)
• Tisch - 721 Broadway, Rm 1217 (ext 81954) and 1218 (ext 81825) 
  

In case of a life threatening emergency that is imminent (i.e., someone is holding or says they have a weapon and is threatening to use it), please call 911 immediately and then public safety 212-998-2222. 

If a student expresses (either verbally or in written work) thoughts or impulses to hurt him/herself or impulses to harm others without any immediate, visible plan or intent, keep the student where he or she is, call the Wellness Exchange at 212-443-9999 and request an urgent assessment. 

If the student is not at imminent risk, but you are worried about the student’s or the community’s well-being, please reach out to the Wellness Exchange in order to seek advice on how to help the student.

Faculty and Staff Outreach to Students with Mental Health Concerns

In an environment where academics are the priority, faculty and staff are in a unique position to interact, communicate, and observe students and notice emerging difficulties.

Be alert to signs of personal or psychological difficulties. If you notice any of the following signs, you can ask to meet privately with the student or call the Wellness Exchange to seek advice on how to address the situation:

• Mood: extreme sadness, anger or anxiety, or mood swings
• Performance: concentration difficulties, deteriorating performance, unexplained absences or lateness
• Social behavior: extreme withdrawal, dependency, irritability, hostility
• Speech or writings: student alludes to problems, feeling worthless, excessive guilt, thoughts of  death or suicide, or thoughts of hurting others or threats to others

1. If you choose to meet privately with the student, point out specifically the signs you’ve observed, say you’re concerned, and ask what’s wrong (“I wanted to talk to you because I notice you’ve been late recently, you never participate in class anymore, and you seem troubled.  I’m concerned. What’s wrong?”)
2. Discourage quick dismissals (“I’m fine – it’s nothing.”) Say you really have noticed this change and that perhaps others have too.  Ask how you can help.  Then let the student talk.  Listen carefully to what he or she says.  If they continue to decline your offer to help, ask if there is anyone else in the department or at NYU to whom they feel comfortable talking and with whom you can help them connect, if necessary.
3. If the student explains that the problem or stress in their life is time limited, suggest a time (no later than one month) to reassess how he or she is doing.  If the student explains that they are already in treatment with a therapist, you needn’t do anything further but determine whether improvement is occurring. If your concerns continue, and you feel at an impasse in your conversations with the student, call the Wellness Exchange for further guidance on how to address the situation.
4. If the student explains that there is an ongoing problem and it does not appear that the student will be able to deal with it by him/herself, you should recommend counseling to the student.  An ongoing  problem is anything that impairs the student’s well-being or school performance on a chronic, regular basis that you have no expectation will change in the short term; or an acute problem that has caused such significant impairment that makes you concerned for the student’s health or safety. Examples may include:
• depression
• severe homesickness
• excessive anxiety or stress
• an eating disorder
• severe family conflicts
• inability to study or concentrate
• drug or alcohol abuse

5. To refer the student to mental health services, tell them that the NYU Wellness Exchange:
   • is devoted to helping students with personal difficulties
   • offers walk-ins, short-term individual counseling, group counseling, and referrals
   • is free of charge
   • is staffed by professional counselors
   • is confidential
   • is easy to schedule an appointment: call 212-443-9999 or 212-998-4780. Or stop by for a walk-in (no appointment is necessary).  Walk-in hours are posted at www.nyu.edu/999/counseling.

6. Be encouraging if the student is frightened or skeptical of mental health treatment. If necessary, explain that counseling doesn’t mean someone is crazy or weak and that many students seek Counseling Services while at NYU.  But respect the student’s decision whether or not to go.  Sometimes students initially reject counseling but take the step later – particularly if the signs of distress do not change over time.
7. If the student does agree to go to counseling, provide added support by asking him or her to give you feedback about how the appointment went.
8. If the student does not agree to go to counseling, and you continue to be concerned about them, reach out to the Wellness Exchange yourself to seek advice on next steps.