Mental Health Volunteer Team Established by the Mental Health Education Center

During the COVID-19 epidemic, a group of young volunteers in Tianjin took action and became the "guardians" of people's hearts. Through psychological assistance volunteer services, they help to remove the confusion of the epidemic, relieve negative emotions, and help those seeking help to find comfort.

In late January, the Tianjin University Mental Health Education Center set up a psychological assistance volunteer team to provide psychological assistance services for faculty and students as well as the public.

"About 90% of the volunteers in this team are young adults, including psychological counselors, psychiatrists, and graduate students in psychology." Said An Li, deputy director of the Tianjin University Mental Health Education Center and head of the volunteer team.

Du Xiayang, a young mother born in the 1990s, is a part-time psychological consultant at the Tianjin University Mental Health Education Center and member of the volunteer team. In the past three months, Du Xiayang's schedule has been very full. While taking care of her one-year-old child, she took time to provide psychological assistance services, often a dozen hours a day.

In order to improve her ability to provide psychological assistance in public health emergencies, Du Xiayang draws nutrition and learning skills from online training courses every night. She is unfamiliar with providing psychological guidance over video connection, so she constantly seeks to improve the assistance program and shorten the distance with her helpers.

"The psychological problems during the epidemic are worthy of attention. Students are prone to confusion in academic arrangements, career planning, love relationships, etc. I have been very eager to do something to help them ease the anxiety caused by the epidemic.” Xia Yang said.

"When I was in high middle school, I got good grades. However, during this period, I couldn't keep up with the progress of online learning, and I’m sick and tired of study." A freshman student sent a message seeking psychological help.

Through a video connection, Du Xiayang got in touch with the student and listened to him from the perspective of a friend. With a basic understanding of the student’s situation and establishing a firm counselling relationship, Du Xiayang gradually advanced the content and depth of the dialogue, helped him to find the source of his weariness of learning and gave him a "psychological prescription". After several counselling sessions, the student's psychological condition gradually stabilized.

"At the end of the psychological counseling, the student told me that it was really good to be understood." Du Xiayang said.

Zhang Qiang, a 23-year-old Tianjin University master’s student in psychology, is also a member of the volunteer team. His appointment group is the team's "outpost" and the "first door" before the help-seeker enters the psychological counseling session. From understanding the personal wishes and counseling needs of help-seekers, to helping them match the appropriate psychological counselor, to arranging time and consulting methods, Zhang Qiang must be patient and careful in every step.

Although Zhang Qiang has been staying at home for three months, his life has been busy and full. Participating in video training, formulating work processes, making an appointment with the operation team, and conducting preliminary online communication with those seeking help

"I am very proud to be able to work with the team and devote myself to the work to help those in need." Zhang Qiang said.

As of April 30, this volunteer team has handled 852 psychological service appointments, 906 online psychological counseling assistance seekers, 92 hotline helpers, and 46 email consultations.

"Every time I hear a help-seeking person say that their anxiety has eased, I feel very relieved and feel that my contribution is worthwhile." Said Tan Tingting, a teacher at the Tianjin University Mental Health Education Center.

In the face of the epidemic, this aggressive team did not stop. At present, they are constantly exploring the path of diversified psychological assistance services such as micro-classes, online lectures, and online group counseling to provide psychological support for more people.

This special experience has firmly convinced Du Xiayang that he could get a doctor's degree in Applied Psychology and continue his further study. "The mental health of the public needs a strong professional psychological service team to protect. In the future, I will use my knowledge and experience to help more people in need and fill their hearts with sunshine."

By: Chen Yuxuan

Editors: Keith Harrington, Sun Xiaofang