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Recognizing the Emotionally Distressed Student/Faculty/Staff Member
If you are concerned about a student, faculty or staff member, but are not sure how to proceed, call the Counseling
Center or the Employee Assistance Program. A counselor will return your call and help you determine an appropriate course of action. Your call will remain confidential. Consultations of this sort are a regular part of our services, and are frequently used by faculty to learn how best to deal with students who are in need of assistance.

Due to the opportunities for faculty and staff to observe and interact with students and other employees, they often are the first to recognize that someone is in distress. Look for a pattern of behaviors, but understand that not everyone who is in distress experiences the same symptoms. Additionally, distress may be situational (i.e., short-term), or chronic (i.e., ongoing) and the severity of symptoms varies with individuals.

1. What to Do: Proactive Preparedness
   
   • Be familiar with signs and symptoms of ongoing distress
     
   • Seek consultation with Counseling Center or other knowledgeable
     professionals
     
   • Direct the person to helpful resources at NJC or in the
     community (Counseling Center or Student Life)
     
   • Be familiar with student policies and procedures, especially
     dealing with disruptive classroom behaviors and disciplinary
     process.
2. Awareness and Identification: What to Look For (Signs/Symptoms)
   
   • Speech incoherent, loud, pressured, rapid, disjointed, slurred
     
   • Thought content: poor reality contact, irrational, paranoid,
     suspicious, grandiose, confused, disoriented, poor planning and
     decision-making
     
   • Dependency (hangs around, makes excessive appointments,
     excessive telephone contacts)
     
   • Stalking, obsessive pre-occupation, obsessive fantasizing
     
   • Intoxication (substance use and abuse); abuse of prescription
     medications or "over the counter" products
     
   • Anxiety (trembling, sweating, irritability, restlessness,
     reports worry, difficulty concentrating, insomnia, feeling overwhelmed,
     fearful)
     
   • Depression (reports or reveals persistent sadness, feelings of
     hopelessness, guilt, worthlessness, loss of interest or pleasure,
     insomnia, weight gain or loss, decreased energy, fatigue, difficulty
     concentrating)
     
   • In class: inconsistent attendance, decline in physical hygiene,
     listlessness, falling asleep in class, frequent illnesses/absences, poorly
     prepared or inconsistent work (especially if changed
     from a prior level of functioning), irritability, mood swings
     
   • Suicidal: makes threats or references to not wanting to live
     any longer, reports an overwhelming loss (perceived), has available
     means and a viable plan, reports lack of emotional support system
     (withdrawal), reveals poor coping strategies, reports or reveals
     substance use and abuse