For some students, college life just doesn’t turn out the way they expect it to.

NIU has about 25,000 different people with very different problems. Whether it is a feeling of no identity or a feeling of low esteem, students should realize they are not alone.

Barbara Zuber, clinical psychologist at NIU Counseling Services, feels that it is very normal for students to experience feelings of loneliness or isolation when they are in a college setting.

“These days, much stress is put on college students because of the intense pressure to succeed. Some students feel that because their parents put so much money into their college education, they cannot fail,” Zuber said.

“There are also many students here that are the first in their families to attend college, and feel that they might let everyone down if they don’t succeed,” she said.

Zuber mentioned that it comes to the point that the student cannot handle these feelings alone anymore.

“College is an experience within itself,” Zuber said. “Students feel they can’t talk to anyone, even their friends, about what they are feeling because they might be a burden or think that no one is experiencing the same feelings.

“When it gets to the point that the student feels that there is no where else to turn, the group therapy sessions that the Counseling Services offer could be a possible solution,” she said.

A brochure titled “Group Therapy,” which can be found in the Counseling and Student Development Center’s office across from the Bursar’s Office, states “under the skilled direction of a group therapist, the therapy group can give support, offer alternatives, or gently comfort the person. During group therapy, people begin to see that they are not alone.”

Zuber said group therapy is usually very successful because “the person realizes that they are not the only student in this whole school that feels the same way they do. Group therapy classes are the chance to let your feelings out and listen to the stories of your peers that are feeling the same way.”

This semester, the center is offering 10 classes beginning Feb. 11 in which they can be involved in some type of group therapy. The classes are free for students.

Anyone interested can call the center at 753-1206 to talk with a member of the counseling staff who can help choose the proper group. Students are encouraged to call by Feb. 8.