Due to recommendations from the CDC, State of North Carolina, and the UNC System related to COVID-19, Counseling & Psychological Services (the Counseling Center) is not offering in-person Let's Talk consultations until further notice. However, we are excited to offer a virtual version of this service: Let's Teletalk. Let's Teletalk is a program that provides easy access to informal, brief, confidential one-on-one consultations with Counseling Center counselors. Let's TeleTalk provides informal consultations to help students address specific problems and to familiarize them with the process of talking to a counselor. Let's TeleTalk consultants can share helpful resources, offer their perspective on a student's concerns, and assist in learning how to help a friend; additionally, they can help students determine whether formal counseling at the Counseling Center would be useful and, if appropriate, assist students in scheduling an appointment. Although Let's TeleTalk counselor consultants are mental health professionals, this service is not intended to be a substitute for psychotherapy or emergency services and does not constitute mental health treatment.
All sessions offered during Summer 2021 will be held virtually via Zoom. They are offered weekly on Tuesdays from 2:00-4:00pm (June 1 - July 27) and Thursdays from 10:00am-12:00pm (May 27 - July 29). To find the Zoom links and more information please visit the Counseling & Psychological Services Center events page and click on the Let's TeleTalk shift you would like to attend. Please note that you must first log into App State Engage for the events page to be visible.
If you are interested, please use the link at the designated time (mentioned above) to join a Zoom meeting with a Let's TeleTalk counselor consultant via App State Engage. Students will be seen individually for a 15-20 minute consultation on a first-come, first-served basis. There may be a wait in the virtual waiting room if the counselor consultant is seeing another student. Please wait and we'll be with you as soon as we can.
Consultations are held on the schedule mentioned above. Consultations are:
Students come to disucss a variety of topics, including:
Although Let's Talk counselor consultants are professionals, Let's Talk is not a substitute for psychotherapy or formal counseling and doesn't constitute mental health treatment.
Let's Talk is not the best fit to address to psychological emergencies, such as recent traumatic events (e.g. a sexual assault), seeing/hearing things others do not, and concerns for immediate safety (including suicidality or homicidality). In these cases, students should seek help by walking in to the Counseling Center (first floor, Miles Annas Building) or, if outside of business hours, calling 828-262-3180.
Students should also contact the Counseling Center (or other psychological services provider to whom they have been referred) instead of going to Let's Talk in the following situations:
Let's Talk provides space for a brief conversation or informal consultation and it should not be confused with or substituted for counseling or therapy services. This is a confidential service; however, we may need to share information with others in the event of:
Information shared at Let's Talk is maintained by the Counseling Center and not included within educational records.
Counselor consultants are mental health professionals who are employed by the Counseling & Psychological Services Center and work in that setting as well as working at Let's Talk locations. The counselor consultants for the Spring 2021 semester are:
Staff Psychologist, Outreach Coordinator
Pronouns: she, her, hers
Staff Psychologist
Pronouns: he, him, his
If you have other questions not answered above please contact Dr. Emily Lazar.
The Counseling & Psychological Services Center at Appalachian State University is deeply indebted to the counselors at the Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) at Cornell University who pioneered and modeled "Let's Talk" and made it such a successful service at Cornell. Appalachian's Let's Talk program is based on Cornell's concept. With permission, some of the material from this website has been adapted or reproduced from the Let's Talk websites of Cornell University, Northwestern University, Southern Utah University, University of Minnesota, and the University of Notre Dame.
The Counseling Center offers after-hours emergency coverage for urgent mental health concerns such as suicidal thoughts, sexual assault, and other trauma. Call the Counseling Center at 828-262-3180 and select the option to speak with the counselor on-call.
For additional resources see our Emergency Services page.
