Meet the Behavioral Health Team
The Faces of the Department
Hey, everyone! To be honest, I have never been the best at discussing myself, which is probably why I am pretty good at getting others to talk about themselves…a very helpful skill as a psychotherapist, a not so useful skill when people want to get to know you…but I promise I will give it my best shot. I have been in clinical practice since 2006 and at Campbell, since the medical school began in 2013, where I came on as the Founding Director and now Chair of the Department of Behavioral Health. Prior to my position at Campbell, I worked across the state in various hospitals and medical settings practicing psychotherapy and providing behavioral consultation to patients, clinicians and staff, as well as providing behavioral health education to medical trainees. In other words, I have had the opportunity to work closely with multiple health professions and professionals over the course of their development (e.g., medical students, medical residents, fully practicing physicians). This type of longitudinal work has given me a unique understanding of the problems/issues that health professionals face across the continuum of their development, and more importantly, how and when those issues emerge. As a clinician, it is my standpoint that you, as the client, are your own best expert. Why would you not be? You have been with yourself every second, of every minute, of every day since you were born. If, at any point, that has not been the case, please set up an appointment with one of us ASAP! I am of the mind, that anytime we get “stuck” or confused in life it is because we have chosen to ignore ourselves, which we do for any number of reasons. However, here’s the rub…you cannot escape yourself, and the faster you try to run, the quicker things tend to catch up to you…this has been my experience and that of my clients. Ultimately, we suffer because instead of acting on reality as it is, which is what we call acceptance, we act on reality as we want/expect it to be. This incongruence between reality and our actions seems to be the source of so many of our problems. Therapy then becomes a place where you, as the client, can think through and act on things the way you “truly” feel you need to, instead of how you think you “should” act on or feel about them. In other words, as a therapist, my aim is to create a space where you can be your true, unabridged, unadulterated self. At the end of the day, ladies and gents, you have two choices in life, you can either “get with it” or “get against it.” The “it” in this in context is you, and one does the latter always to their detriment. Now is the time to truly grow into yourselves as people, not for some flowery or metaphysical purpose, but to fully maximize your abilities and skills as a healthcare professional. This means doing the scariest thing any person can do- try to be who they really are all the time.-Dan Marlowe, Ph.D., Assistant Dean, Academic Success, Chair & Assistant Professor, Department of Behavioral Health
Change is not always easy. In the face of demanding challenges, there is often a pull toward comfort and safety. At times, this is necessary and helpful, at other times it can prohibit the growth necessary for adjusting to challenges and developing the flexibility to adapt to ongoing demands. After more than 2o years as a therapist, I’ve learned that problems come in many forms, stress is inevitable, and the demands and challenges of life are unavoidable. Where the difference is possible is in how we orient ourselves to problems, stressors, and the challenges that come our way, not in eliminating them. The psychologist Carol Dweck, after decades of research, has recognized two types of mindsets people bring to challenges. One, the “fixed mindset,” sees limitations and uses avoidance to cope with challenges that seem out of reach, the other, the “growth mindset,” invites challenges, regards them as opportunities for growth and approaches them with the belief that hard work will lead to success. There is certainly more to it than that, but these examples of mindsets demonstrate that “how” one orients him/herself to difficulty influences both their relationship to the difficulties they face and the likely outcomes that are possible.-Jeff Krepps, Ph.D., Director of Behavioral Health Education & Research
They called me “The Handout Queen.” In my second year as a clinical psychologist at a VA Outpatient Clinic, I was facilitating the first session of a Stress Management Group and handing out a description of the stress response when one member said, “Here she goes with the handouts. You better get a folder because you will get a lot of handouts from her. She is The Handout Queen.” As I looked at the veteran, he started to laugh. “Actually,” he said somewhat sheepishly. “I still look at the handouts you gave during the Anger Management group last year.” Counseling is different from talking to a friend about a problem. Friends are wonderful and essential to our well-being, but they rely on their knowledge of you, the relationship between the two of you, and their life experiences to offer support. As a counselor, I rely on your expertise about yourself, my experiences working with past clients on similar concerns, and my field. Clinical psychologists and other helping disciplines (e.g. social workers, marriage and family therapists, mental health counselors, etc.) utilize research on mental health, wellness, relationships, emotion, health, behavior, and myriad of other topics to understand each individual’s concerns. YOUR concerns. Interventions may be based on empirically-based treatments, which are similar to the concept of evidence-based medicine. For example, rather than thinking about how I managed my stress last week, I try to think about the literature on effective ways to manage stress when I am talking with you. Then we can compare strategies that have worked for you in the past with interventions that have worked for other people, and happen to be listed in several convenient handouts in my office. I like using handouts to distill empirically-based treatments because it helps you remember helpful items from the 1 hour of therapy a week to use during the other 167 hours in your week. So come see me if you need to talk. I will even give you a folder.-Dr. Susan Stanton, P.h.D, Director of Clinical Services
787, the number of sessions I have had with students since I started with the Behavioral Health Department within CUSOM in May of 2017. On one hand, the number seems enormous and people often ask how as a therapist I can sit and listen to my client’s struggles all day. On the other hand, I reflect on the 787 hours as a drop in the bucket of what I can accomplish as a clinician over the years here at Campbell. In one of my favorite books about therapy, “Letters to a Young Therapist”, the author, Mary Pipher suggests we are not listening to problems but rather listening for solutions, and I find this to be very true in the work that I do with clients. As a clinician, I view my role as multifaceted; I am an objective healer, a guide, a teacher, and a cheerleader. Objectivity is an important quality to implement in therapy, I have to stay alert to my own biases and opinions and recognize they are not necessarily useful to my clients. My objectivity allows clients to instead reflect on their own perspectives, sometimes narrowed and assist them with considering alternatives. I am a guide as I assist clients with finding these alternative perspectives. I am a teacher in that I have a plethora of knowledge about therapeutic topics, theories, techniques, and concepts that I can impart to clients. I am a cheerleader with the goal of helping my clients to feel supported, engaged and wanting to continue in the process of therapy, which can be very challenging work. I am a healer in that I strive towards my clients leaving therapy feeling more content, calmer and in touch with their strengths than when they arrived.– Samantha Turnipseed, MS, LPC, Behavioral Health Clinician
CHANGE- my current season of life. New town, new house, new job, new friends, and so much more. Change is not always easy, but it can be an adventure with exciting twists and turns. It can be scary and good all at the same time. Change is what brought me to the Behavioral Health Department at CUSOM in December of 2017 after working 15 years at Opendoor Church in Winterville, NC. For the most part, I am the first point of contact for the Behavioral Health Department. A positive first impression is an important start to building a relationship and sets the stage for your entire experience. Although I may not meet everyone face-to-face, my hope is that every contact with the Behavioral Health Department is a pleasant encounter. –Teresa Butrum, Administrative Assistant
To learn more about the Behavioral Health Department or to request an appointment, visit us! Behavioral Health