When Shelby picked up the phone during one of her night shifts at the UCLA Peer Helpline, the girl on the other end was already crying.
She explained to Shelby, the executive director of the line, that she was having problems with her boyfriend.
Though Shelby, who wished to remain anonymous to protect the confidentiality of the line, said she did not offer the girl a solution to her problem, by listening and asking questions she helped the girl come to a conclusion on her own.
“The content of the call didn’t matter; what was so gratifying was that I was able to help her feel better. By the end of the call, she had stopped crying and felt she had come up with a way to deal with her problem,” Shelby said.
The UCLA Peer Helpline is a student-run organization with 45 trained volunteers who take calls from 8 p.m. to midnight seven days a week.
The counselors, officially called “para-professional crisis-intervention counselors,” do not give advice to callers, but try to give them a safe place to express themselves without feeling judged.
If necessary, they refer callers to other services, including Student Psychological Services, as well as other hotlines, counselors and hospitals in the area to receive further help.
Some of the issues people commonly call about include depression, stress, relationships, alcohol and drugs, family problems and loneliness, said Kevin, an associate director of the line.
“A lot of times people tell us things they would tell a close friend. We try to display empathy without giving advice,” said Catie, the public relations director of the line.
The club has advisers from SPS who help with training and help allocate funding for the helpline, Kevin said.
Many volunteers said they believe the line’s confidentiality allows people to feel more comfortable calling in ““ both the volunteers and the callers remain anonymous.
“When someone calls, they’re talking to someone they have never met before. It makes for a safe place for people to open up,” Shelby said.
Kevin also said he believes anonymity allows people who normally would not want to seek help to do so. He said the line is a source for people, even those who do not attend UCLA, to talk to a counselor when they are reluctant to meet someone face to face.
But Alexa Nelson, a first-year sociology student, said though she believes the helpline is a valuable resource, the anonymity might deter her from using it.
“If I had a problem I would go talk to people I know, like a (resident assistant). I would feel weird talking to a stranger,” she said.
Shelby said she believes there are benefits for students in talking to their peers as opposed to a trained professional.
“When you speak to an adult therapist or counselor, they are already analyzing you because that’s their job. Our goal is to listen. In college, I think that’s what a lot of people need, especially in a school as big as UCLA,” she said.
Chris Yi, a third-year communication studies student, said he believes the counselors’ approach to callers is a good one.
“I think it’s smart that the line does not give advice because it’s difficult to give advice for serious issues like depression and suicide,” he said.
But Nelson said she would prefer to receive actual advice from counselors. She said she believes a mix of listening with advice is the most beneficial.
Though volunteers do not give advice, they undergo a quarter of extensive training before they can work for the helpline.
For six weeks they meet with advisers to discuss counseling skills. The advisers go over ways to make callers feel more comfortable, the tone of voice the volunteers should use, and how to help callers identify their problems and feelings, said Karen, the helpline’s training director.
Then they are divided into support groups, which are led by an experienced counselor, and review information they learned and do role-playing exercises. At the end of the quarter, the directors of the line test the trainees with a mock call and interview them.
After joining the helpline, counselors continue to learn new skills. A new listener works 15 shifts with an older listener before taking a call on their own, Karen said.
The counselors of the Peer Helpline said they also use each other as resources ““ when a listener answers a call, a secondary listener sits beside them, not listening to the call, but serving as a resource in case the other listener needs to give referrals to the caller, Catie said.
Though some counselors said they were apprehensive when first joining the club, they called volunteering for the line a valuable experience.
“Initially I just wanted to be involved in something. I was not comfortable answering calls at first, but now it has become much more natural,” Kevin said.
Karen also said the line has been a more satisfying experience than she expected.
“When I joined I didn’t know a lot about the line. But it’s been very fulfilling. I’ve learned a lot about psychological problems and why people think the way they do,” Karen said.
Catie believes it is one of the most rewarding activities she has been involved with at UCLA.
“After a call, I feel good about what I’ve done. It’s a feeling I haven’t felt anywhere else,” Catie said.