Virtual Therapy for College Students
Getting into college isn't the same as being ready for it.
The move away is supposed to be the best years of your life. For a lot of students, it's the moment everything gets hard: making friends when everyone seems to already have a group chat, managing your own time, asking for help, holding it together when no one's watching. Some go quiet. Some spiral through a bad semester. Some come home.
The struggling isn't a sign something's wrong with you. It's usually a sign nobody taught you how to handle this part yet.
What college students come to therapy for
- Anxiety and overthinking
- Feeling down, flat, or not like yourself
- Low motivation and procrastination
- A semester going sideways, or thinking about dropping out
- Loneliness, social anxiety, or trouble making friends
- Roommates, family stress, and relationships where you never quite know where you stand
- Drinking or using more than you meant to
- Homesickness and adjusting to living away from home
- Perfectionism and fear of failure
You don't need to check every box. One is enough.
No lecture. No judgment. No pretending you should already know how to do this.
We'll figure out what's actually getting in the way. Usually it's a feeling you've been avoiding, not a flaw in who you are. Then we build skills that fit your real life, not a color-coded version of it.
Some sessions are practical, like why answering one email feels impossible. Some are about bigger questions. It all counts. And if you're only here because your parents pushed, that's okay. We'll focus on what matters to you.
Campus counseling center or a private therapist?
Your campus counseling center is a good first stop, and for some students it's enough. Most centers are set up for short-term care, often a few sessions, and they get busy at exactly the times students need them most.
A private therapist makes sense when you want ongoing support, someone who knows your history, and continuity over breaks and summers. I often work alongside campus resources, not instead of them.
Keep the same therapist at home, at school, and over break
Can you keep your therapist if you go to college in another state? Often, yes. Through PSYPACT, I can see clients by telehealth when they're physically located in any of 42 participating states. We can start before you leave, keep going on campus, and not skip a beat over winter break.
What counts is where you are at the time of each session, so we'll confirm eligibility before we begin.
If you're the parent reading this
Parents usually find me first. If your son or daughter is struggling at school and won't ask for help, you're not overreacting by looking.
With your student's permission, I also support parents through the adjustment, because the student isn't the only one making a transition. And if your student isn't ready to talk to anyone yet, Parent Guidance is a place for you to start on your own.
1 in 5
full-time first-year students at private nonprofit four-year colleges don't return to their school for a second year. And among students who have thought about leaving, emotional stress and mental health are the top two reasons.
Sources: National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, 2024; Lumina Foundation and Gallup, State of Higher Education 2025.
You don't have to wait until it's a disaster.
Smoke is a reasonable time to ask for help. If you're struggling, feeling stuck, or tired of saying you're fine, let's talk.