From roommates to first loves, the college experience allows students to explore and develop various types of relationships. As exciting as the prospect of these new relationships may be, they are often complicated and confusing as well.
To provide a supportive setting in which female students can discuss and confront relationship issues, Natalie Van Dusen, Psy.D., a postdoctoral intern at Creighton’s Center for Health Counseling, created a women’s relationship group. The group, which currently meets Thursday evenings in the Center for Health and Counseling in the Harper Center, was opened to female students in the middle of last semester. The students spend about an hour talking about their relationship experiences with family members, significant others, roommates and friends.
“[The group is focused on] learning about yourself and yourself within relationships,” Van Dusen said.
Van Dusen said some common issues many college women face generally include emotional breakups following intense romantic relationships, parents’ divorce and arguments with close friends. The group environment allows students to “bounce ideas off of one another” as to the health of the relationship and realize they are not alone when it comes to managing the stress of being in a relationship.
“Relationships are something that everyone struggles with,” Van Dusen said. “The power of getting in those often first, big, intense relationships can have a huge blow.”
She added that talking out these issues, however painful they may be, is a healthier alternative to keeping them bottled up inside. Sometimes, however, students are hesitant to discuss such sensitive issues with people they know on campus. The women’s relationship group provides a safe and confidential environment for members to open up to other members in the group. Van Dusen said the cohesive group atmosphere is conducive to helping women make sense of a relationship and finding support when the relationship isn’t working out.
“It’s hard to find someone who’s not connected to you [on campus],” Van Dusen said. “The group promotes genuine sharing — no façade.”
Van Dusen stressed the importance of confidentiality in maintaining trust and encouraging disclosure within the group. Due to the sensitive and often extremely private nature of many of the students’ stories, she plans on closing the group to any more members after the next meeting.
Even though this is the first time the Center for Health and Counseling Services has offered a relationship-themed discussion group, it has offered similar groups targeted toward helping women understand and cope with common issues they face in college. Van Dusen said the Center for Health and Counseling Services had seen an increase in the number of students dealing with relationship issues, so they decided to form a group that directly addressed the immediate needs of the students. Van Dusen said the permanent members will continue to meet on a weekly basis for the remainder of the semester.