Ally: More Than a Label

Written By: Rey Boone, Clinical Intern at ACS, Outlet Program “ally” is a word in the LGBTQ+ community that is commonly used to mean a non-queer (straight/cisgender) person who sympathizes with the queer cause and is willing to stick their neck out if necessary. This person typically has gay, lesbian, or transgender friends or family […]

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Diary of an ACS Intern

Written By: Casia Ravi, MFT Trainee at ACS, On-Campus Counseling Program AFTER YEARS in another career that I loved and while pursuing a second master’s degree in counseling psychology, I summoned up the courage to fully lean into the field of psychotherapy this past year. I am in my final year at Santa Clara University, […]

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Anxiety: How to Help your Teen Cope

Written By: Antonina Taranova, Trainee at ACS, On-Campus Counseling Program what should parents know about anxiety? One in five adolescents may develop an anxiety disorder over the span of their adolescence. Such anxiety disorders can have a dramatic impact on the daily life of children and constitute a risk factor for more severe mental disorders […]

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Pronouns and Why They Matter

Written By: Brittani DeCloedt, Clinical Intern at ACS, On-Campus Counseling Program PRONOUNS: AN EXPLAINER Pronouns are used in everyday language in reference to people and things.  In the English language, the pronouns used most frequently are: I, you, she, her, he, him, they, and it.  “I”, “you”, “they”, and “it” would be considered gender neutral, […]

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Back to School: Managing Stress

Written By: Samantha Rivas, Clinical Intern at ACS, Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment Program The alarm goes off. It’s time to pick out what to wear, get to school on time, see both new and familiar faces, get an excess amount of academic assignments, attend after-school programs, and juggle the obligations between family, friends, school, work, […]

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Trauma-Informed Care in Adolescents

Written By: Kate Polk, Trainee at ACS, On-Campus Counseling Program TRAUMA is more common than we think. Darnell, Flaster, Hendricks, Kerbrat, & Comtois (2019) mention in their article that among adolescents between the ages of 13-17, 62% have been exposed to at least one or more traumatic event throughout their lifetime. These numbers are high, […]

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Healthy Relationships in Adolescence

Written By: Briana Rodriguez, MFT Trainee at ACS, On-Campus Counseling Program Relationships are an important factor in development throughout the lifespan (Adams & Williams, 2011). However, relationship formation is particularly vital for adolescents’ development as they learn to navigate friendships and romantic relationships, as well as understand how those two things interact (Adams & Williams, […]

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Diary of an ACS Intern

Written By: Tarra Symons, AMFT at ACS, On-Campus Counseling Program What is the typical day like as an ACS intern? Hmm, well, first of all, that’s hard to say because no two days are the same! You can do your very best to plan, be very well-organized, and feel prepared, but sometimes you just need […]

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Disrupting the School-to-Prison Pipeline

Written By: Sean Vallor, AMFT at ACS, Community Counseling Program “The only way to deal  with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act or rebellion.” – Albert Camus As counselors, it is critical to be aware of systemic factors that adversely affect our clients and their […]

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Pride Month (And Why It Matters)

Written By: Cassidy Todd, Clinical Intern at ACS , Outlet Program in june 1969 in Greenwich Village, New York, a new movement began in the US.  Police raided the Stonewall Inn, a bar known to openly accept and embrace people of all sexual orientations, gender identity and expression, and proceeded to initiate a three-day riot […]

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