Many of the groups offered have elements from each of the descriptions listed below, creating a combined process/support group, for example. The group facilitator(s) can help you better understand how a group fits with your specific needs.
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Adelante Mujeres
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Group Facilitator: Roxana Reyes
This group is designed to provide a safe and supportive environment to explore personal experiences on campus, gain emotional support, promote culturally satisfying self-care, and enhance community among students identifying as Chicana, Latina, gender fluid, gender nonconforming and two spirit. Participants are encouraged to self-reflect and share as comfortably as possible, keeping support and empowerment in mind as the theme of the group.
Weekly topics will be decided by the group, but may include:
- Adjusting to college
- Getting connected on campus
- Managing mood and self-care
- Navigating multiple identities
- Chicana/Latina mental health
- Navigating relationships… and more
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Adelante Mujeres - An Informal Support Space Completamente en Español!
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Group Facilitator: Marlene Velasquez
Adelante Mujeres is a group designed to provide a safe and supportive environment to explore personal experiences on campus, gain emotional support, promote self-care, and enhance community among Chicana/Latina students. As an informal support group, there is no commitment to therapy and you will be invited to share as comfortably as you wish.
Este grupo es gratuito y sera un compromiso de seis. El compromiso de asistir las seis semanas ayuda a crear una mejor experiencia grupal y brindar apoyo colectivo. Es preferido que las participantes se sientan comodas expresandose en Español ya que el grupo sera facilitado completamente en ese idioma.
Los temas semanales serán decididos por el grupo y pueden incluir:
- Adjusting to college
- Getting connected on campus
- Managing mood and self-care
- Navigating multiple identities
- Chicana mental health
- Ancestral knowledge and cultural mental health practices
- Relationships, etc.
Students who identify as transgender female, gender fluid, and/or cisgender female are welcome to join.
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Building Social Confidence
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Group Facilitator: Lynn Delgado
Group members learn how to increase confidence in social situations by building social skills, the foundation for successful interpersonal relationships. Members develop effective communication skills, assertion skills, and social support--”community.” Members also address their own individual goals, such as developing/maintaining friendships, dating, and confidence with academic assertion and public speaking.
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Engineering Small Group Process
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Group Facilitator: Chris Le
Join this therapeutic small group of 4-6 members to explore, along with your fellow Engineering students, how to get more from your connection with others. All group members have spent time in individual therapy and existing/dual relationships are explored and addressed in the group. We will meet each week through the quarter to develop a reliably safe and trusting confidential “social lab" or "sandbox” in which each member will be encouraged to: - have greater access and expression of feelings and thoughts as they happen - receive and give feedback with others - recognize similarities and differences within the group - work with others to skillfully share group time and attention
Please reach out to Chris Le, LPCC at chdle@ucdavis.edu with interest. The group is open to new members at the beginning of each quarter as spots become open.
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Family Differences
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Group Facilitator: Yue "Brian" Shi
Do you feel like you and your parents live in two different worlds? No matter how hard you try to convey your perspectives, you don’t feel heard? Your parents attempt to support you, but you want to be supported differently? You disagree on fundamental values with your family members?
If you answered “Yes” to any of these questions, consider joining the Family Differences Group where you canSeek support for the unique struggles you face growing up in a family sharing different cultural and/or generational values.
- Provide support to others expressing unique family concerns.
- Connect with others who share complex family upbringings.
- Share and learn about varying cultural and generational dynamics.
- Explore methods to develop healthier relationships with family members.
- Explore methods to improve communication among family members.
- Explore ways to take care of yourself when feeling impacted by family interactions.
This space welcomes individuals with all immigration status. Space is limited to 8 people
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Graduate Career Exploration Group (GCEG)
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Career decision-making is an ongoing process made more effective within an interactive, supportive group approach. Group members are undergraduates who will identify how their values, interests, preferences and satisfying skills relate to occupations of interest and expanded career options. A focus on personal strengths and common experiences of uncertainty helps enable group members to better understand internal conflicts and external obstacles.
Please note: total cost of assessments is $45 and expected time commitment for activities outside of the 6 session group times is approximately 1-2 hours per week.
If you are interested in participating in this group, please contact the Career Counseling Program at careercounseling@shcs.ucdavis.edu and you will be emailed information about the orientation to the group.
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Grief Support Group
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Group Facilitators: Anne Han & Erica Rico
Death of a loved one is a major life event. When school demands, social/ family expectations, and jobs/internships don't seem to stop, they can compete for your attention and make it difficult to grieve. This online support group is open to undergraduate students who have lost a loved one and would appreciate a designated time and confidential space to focus on the mourning process. The goals of this group are to process loss and grief, learn coping strategies through a multicultural lens, and build community with peers in a similar situation. Those new to grief are especially welcome. If seeking support for loss of your pet, feel free to consult with the facilitator. Pre-screening will be conducted at the beginning of the quarter.
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Guys Group
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Group Facilitators: Chizite Igwe & Mike Dickerson
Guys Group offers a supportive non-judgmental environment for male-identified students from all backgrounds to come together to share their experiences while receiving support and feedback from other group members. Guys Group assists students as they develop insight into themselves, build their emotional intelligence, and strengthen their relationships with others.
Topics can include general issues that men face such as self-esteem, stress management, relationships, gender role expectations, body image, masculinity, life transitions, and any individual concerns that might come up within the group. We encourage each participant to express themselves and share their stories in whatever way feels right to them while prioritizing community, diversity, feminist allyship, and mutual respect.
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HEAL
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Heal is a 7-week skills-based group for students struggling with problematic eating patterns. HEAL targets skills related to mindfulness, emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness. Students practice the skills taught each week to become equipped with strategies that work for them to cope with their problematic behaviors.
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Healing Through Connections - Graduate Student Group
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Group Facilitator: Bai-Yin Chen
This is a process-oriented therapy group. The goal is to provide a safe and confidential space for you to express yourself with freedom, be more in touch with your thoughts and feelings, explore how you connect or disconnect from others and develop a meaningful support space.
- Hey it’s me, Anxiety
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Group Facilitator: Erica Rico
This skills group is open to students that struggle with general anxiety. Sometimes the demands of school, work, and relationships can feel overwhelming and this is a good time for anxiety to creep in and take over. Do you ever feel like sometimes your thoughts are racing, your body starts trembling, or you start sweating out of the blue? Anxiety is actually a healthy part of our life, but sometimes when experienced in excess can make us feel like we’re “going crazy.” This group is designed to learn how to have a better relationship with anxiety by learning how to understand and examine how our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are interconnected.
- "The Journey" Undergrad Therapy Group
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Group Facilitators: Elio Gutierrez & Mike Lysaght
College is hard. Multiple demands, expectations, assumptions, misperceptions. It also might feel isolating. The journey is different for everyone, but it is helpful to have a space to come together to honor connection, communication, and differences. Our group benefits from a diversity of identities and encourages students to support each other in building a meaningful experience and community.
Journey Group is a quarterly “process group.” Process groups are designed to build connection, strengthen interpersonal communication, work through interpersonal conflict and gain support from peers. Each week, we will focus on whatever topics emerge, addressing the interests and responses of members. We will always pay attention to what happens in session among ourselves and what themes and dynamics develop.
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L&S Connections Group
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Group Facilitators: Megan Brown & Chris Le
Feeling lost in the shuffle of college life? Unsure of how to connect more with others? Confused about which campus resources to turn to for help?
Join us to build community and get to know one another during a weekly group intended to promote collaborative support for L&S students in a safe, confidential setting!
College of Letters & Sciences accounts for nearly half of undergraduate students at UCD. These students have significant differences from, and also share similarities with the general UCD student population. This therapeutic group of 6-8 fellow L&S students will offer a chance to explore how you can get more from your connections with others.
We’ll focus on having spontaneous and interactive group conversations, exploring topics initiated by group members. Potential themes of group may include: family relationship transitions, loneliness, navigating major/career identities, thriving in one’s personal life and with others, balancing school with other responsibilities, navigating campus support resources for advising, tutoring, internships/careers, and other opportunities to engage.
We ask group members to be willing to take risks by sharing about themselves and supporting others. We will commit to meeting weekly through the quarter to develop a reliable, safe and trusting “social laboratory" or "sandbox” in which each member will be encouraged to:
- develop greater access to, and expression of thoughts and feelings
- learn to skillfully give and receive feedback with others
- recognize similarities and differences within the group
- share group time and attention
A brief meeting prior to joining the group is necessary to ensure the group can best meet your needs. Contact information below to reach out about your interest in the group and any questions you may have about the group.
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Lavender Connection: LGBTQIA+ Graduate and Professional Student Support Group
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Group Facilitator: Shannon Stuart-Maver
This group is a support group for students who are looking for a safe and confidential space to discuss issues related to being LGBTQIA+. The group will provide a supportive and affirming environment where students can share common experiences and increase their sense of understanding regarding their own gender identity, sexual identity, relationships with others, and sense of empowerment. Areas of focus may include the influence of cultural background and ethnic identity, fostering self-acceptance, stress management, coping skills, coming out to yourself & others, dating, spirituality, campus climate, and family relationships. All identities within the LGBTQIA+ spectrum including those questioning are welcome!
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Lavender Connection: LGBTQIA+ Undergraduate Student Support Group
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Group Facilitators: Leni Tran & Megan Brown
This group is a support group for students who are looking for a safe and confidential space to discuss issues related to being LGBTQIA+. The group will provide a supportive and affirming environment where students can share common experiences and increase their sense of understanding regarding their own gender identity, sexual identity, relationships with others, and sense of empowerment. Areas of focus may include the influence of cultural background and ethnic identity, fostering self-acceptance, stress management, coping skills, coming out to yourself & others, dating, spirituality, campus climate, and family relationships. All identities within the LGBTQIA+ spectrum including those questioning are welcome!
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Liberation: Support Group for Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence
- Group Facilitators: Dorcas Jansen & Allysha Davis
The support group is for student, self-identified womxn survivors who are currently in or have previously been in a violent or abusive partner relationship. The group will provide a safe and supportive environment for survivors to process their experiences with intimate partner violence and connect with other survivors. Participants will have the opportunity to share their story as well as learn strategies to increase their safety and self-care. Themes to be discussed include dynamics of abusive relationships, impact of trauma, safety planning, empowerment, and building healthy relationships.
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Living with Chronic Medical Conditions and Disabilities Group
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Group Facilitators: Stephanie Takeuchi & Rebecca Aronson
This weekly group is a safe, confidential space for undergraduate and graduate students who have physical chronic illnesses and/or visible or invisible disabilities to come together to give and receive support. Common themes discussed include self-care, celebration of accomplishments, coping skills, fostering self-acceptance, empowerment, and enhancing quality of life. Group discussions may also explore experiences related to how chronic conditions impact academics, relationships, and interactions with medical providers. This group space encourages participants to explore concerns and issues important to them, with other students who have similar experience.
- Nourish: The Body & The Self
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Group Facilitators: Chelsea Kelligher & Katie Cougevan
Concerned about your relationship with food or your perception of yourself? Are you in recovery or maintaining your recovery from an eating disorder? You are not alone. Explore your recovery process, strengths, concerns and struggles while offering insight and support to others in a process-oriented therapy group. Nourish is a welcoming, supportive, member empowered process group for students who are in recovery or recovered from an eating disorder of any kind. It is an encouraging place where students can discuss concerns related to food and body image with other students who are also pursuing recovery. Group members will be asked to choose a recovery step that they want to be challenged on in the group.
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Neurodivergent Group
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Group Facilitators: David Murphy & Ralitsa Georgieva
Perhaps you’ve experienced the challenges of trying to navigate a neurotypical world. The anxiety of being accepted… of comprehending social norms and not standing out…of saying something and noticing that it was not received how you intended it. This is a group designed for those who selfidentify as neurodiverse (ADHD, Autism, etc.) students. It is a space to process the traumas and challenges inherent in living in a world that functions differently than our brains. Co-facilitators Ralitsa Georgieva, LMFT and David Murphy, PhD have intersecting identities and experience working with the neurodivergent community. They are offering an in-person group on Mondays at 3 p.m. in North Hall.
- Phoenix Rising: A Support Group for Undergrad Survivors of Sexual Trauma
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Group Facilitators: Olivia Knizek & Cheryl Samuelson
This process-oriented group is open to students who are survivors of sexual abuse, sexual assault, and/or sexual trauma experienced in childhood or as adults. The goal of this group is to provide a healing, empowering, and safe space for survivors to discuss and receive support around a range of issues including relationships, intimacy, sexuality, safety, mind-body awareness, balance, sense of control, communication, and trust. Attention will also be given to providing some self-regulation and mind-body awareness skills as appropriate.
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Thank You, Next - Rebuilding After Breakup
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Group Facilitators: David Murphy & Elio Gutierrez-Montoya
The end of a relationship can be particularly painful and heartbreaking. However, you don’t have to go through a breakup alone. In this process-oriented therapy group, you will explore both the loss and meaning found after a relationship ends in a safe and supportive space. Co-facilitators Elio Gutierrez-Montoya and David Murphy honor the experiences and diverse identities of the group while bringing their own diverse identities into the group process. If you are interested in participating in this group, please call Counseling Services at (530) 752-0871 for a group screening appointment.
- Undergraduate Career Exploration Group (UCEG)
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Group Facilitators: Adriana Delgadillo & Cheryl Samuelson
Career decision-making is an ongoing process made more effective within an interactive, supportive group approach. Group members are undergraduates who will identify how their values, interests, preferences and satisfying skills relate to occupations of interest and expanded career options. A focus on personal strengths and common experiences of uncertainty helps enable group members to better understand internal conflicts and external obstacles.
Please note: total cost of assessments is $45 and expected time commitment for activities outside of the 6 session group times is approximately 1-2 hours per week.
If you are interested in participating in this group, please contact the Career Counseling Program at careercounseling@shcs.ucdavis.edu and you will be emailed information about the orientation to the group.
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Women's Wellness Group
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Take a break from the busy swirl of life and join us for Women’s Wellness—a support group designed especially for graduate and undergraduate women who would like to develop an integrative wellness practice and learn practical skills for managing stress.
To help ensure the group experience is meaningful and cohesive to all participants, a commitment to attend all group meetings is requested.
To schedule a consultation to see if the group is a good match for you, contact Shelley Balla-Hawkins at sballahawkins@ucdavis.edu
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Aggie Mental Health Support Group for Athletes
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Group Facilitator: Dorcas Jansen
This support group is offered to student-athletes interested in a community support space. Topics of discussion may include stress management, interpersonal relations, general wellness, and more.
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BIPOC Support Circle
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Group Facilitators: Chitize Igwe & Lynn Delgado
This support space is offered for self-identified Black, Indigenous, People of Color who want to build community through shared solidarity, discuss ways to be rooted in resilience, and explore challenges of navigating life at UC Davis; including our intersecting identities, microaggressions, “ isms”. academics, career, family, relationships, and maintaining a holistic well-being.
For more information or to sign up, e-mail to Chitize Igwe ccigwe@ucdavis.edu
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Club Sports Group
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Group Facilitator: Dorcas Jansen
This group is for student-athletes interested in a community support space. Topics of discussion may include stress management, interpersonal relations, general wellness, and more.
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Heart of Medicine: A Medical Student Support Group
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Group Facilitator: Stephen Simonson
A supportive space to connect around and explore the complexities of being a medical student. The goal of the group is to improve personal development while offering support and encouragement to your fellow students. All years are welcome to sign up. This group will be offered via an encrypted version of Zoom to improve access and safety of all participating.
For more information or to register for this group contact Dr. Stephen Simonson at ssimonson@ucdavis.edu.
Group is limited to first 15 students and after the second meeting of this 6-week series the group will be closed.
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ICA (Intercollegiate Athletics) Group
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Group Facilitator: Dorcas Jansen
This group is for intercollegiate student-athletes interested in a community support space. Topics of discussion may include stress management, interpersonal relations, general wellness, and more.
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Non-Binary Support Group
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Group Facilitator: Shannon Stuart-Maver
The purpose of the group is to build community, receive and provide support, share experiences and find empowerment in the intersections between gender, life experience, and connection with others.
This is a support group for individuals who identify under the nonbinary umbrella: NB/enbi, genderqueer, genderfluid, multigender, agender, demigender, greygender, aporagender, neutrois, gender non-conforming, questioning, etc.
Potential areas of connection include How nonbinary gender identity and experience intersects with cultural background, family, self-acceptance, academic experiences, relationships in all forms, and emotional health.
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Waiting to Exhale: BIPOC student-athlete support group
- Group Facilitator: Dorcas Jasen
This support space is meant to help build community among BIPOC student-athletes in hopes of supporting the mental health needs of student-athletes of color. The goal of this group is to facilitate discussion regarding themes like accessing resources and support, navigating systems, institutional and internal barriers, personal experiences as a student-athlete of color, and more.
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Wellness Wednesday Talking Circle - Coping Strategies for Native American Students
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Group Facilitator: Tracy Thomas
This is a supportive community talking circle for Native American students to learn coping strategies for handling academic, emotional, and social stressors. Each week we will offer a skill-building session to address specific issues that students are facing. There will be time throughout for Q&A and sharing of best practices
- Session objectives include:
- Learn how to reduce feelings of overwhelm
- Discover how to compartmentalize in a healthy way
- Gain tips on how to stay productive when your mind is distracted
- Participate in storytelling to manage negative emotions
- Develop interpersonal skills to advocate for yourself
- Discuss how to rediscover your own healing traditions
- Manage your time and reduce procrastination
- Learn how to talk to your support system about needs and boundaries
- Participate in a guided meditation and learn breathing techniques
To sign up and receive zoom link, send e-mail to Tracy Thomas at tthomas@ucdavis.edu
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Write to Thrive: Expressive Arts Support Group for Survivors of Sexual Trauma
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Group Facilitator: Maia Huang
Write to Thrive is a healing support space using the medium of writing to provide a safe environment for survivors of sexual trauma. Participants are encouraged to practice self-care, create supportive community with each other, develop coping skills, and explore their personal healing journeys in a compassionate space. The group meets five times throughout the quarter and has life enhancing themes each session. Each participant is encouraged to share only to the degree they feel comfortable in pairs and group check-ins.
In order to develop emotional safety, students are requested to commit to attend all meeting times to ensure the group experience is meaningful and cohesive to all of the participants.
Weekly topics may include:
- Establishing safety in one’s environment and sense of self
- Developing a network of support
- Self-care and self-soothing skills
- Developing from surviving to thriving Healing and releasing difficult experiences
- Sharing and transforming one’s story
- Understanding common reactions and feelings of survivors All genders are welcome to participate.
To schedule a consultation to see if the group is a good match for you, contact Maia Huang at mlhhuang@ucdavis.edu.