Support Groups & Coping Skills

Students must be eligible for University Health and Counseling Services (UHCS) to participate in the group. UHCS services are available for: 

• All undergraduate students  
• All Law school students  
• Graduate students who have either enrolled in the Student Health Plan or who have paid the student health fee  
• Students in special programs by prior arrangement.   

The HEAL group is open to survivors of all gender identities. 

The HEAL group is available to students on the Boston campus only, as the group meets in-person at UHCS (135 Forsyth Street, First Floor).  

HEAL might be a good fit if you: 

• You want to feel less alone in your healing process 
• You want to connect with other survivors 
• You already have some coping skills in place but you want more 
• You can tolerate talking about the topics of sexual violence in a group setting 
• You want to both give and receive support to others with related experiences 

HEAL may not be a good fit for you (at least at this time) if: 

• You want a space to more directly and individually process the trauma you’ve experienced (such as with an individual therapist) 
• You feel that talking about sexual violence/assault in this context may cause your symptoms to worsen 
• Your experience with assault has been very recent and you may first need to build coping skills or connect with other resources before joining 
• You are currently in crisis 
• You are having difficulty managing symptoms such as dissociation or flashbacks which may interfere with the group process 
• You have schedule conflicts that would make it difficult or impossible to commit to coming to group weekly 
• You are not looking for connection and community with other survivors 

Please note that the information listed above is for your consideration only. The decision to join HEAL is ultimately made by interested students in collaboration with group facilitators after a pre-group meeting. If you are interested in the group but are not sure if it would be the right fit, we encourage you to contact the group co-facilitators (see above). 

(Adapted from Boston College Women’s Center 2023) 

Members of the HEAL group are not expected or prompted to share the details of their experience with others during the group. HEAL is what is called a “Phase 1 Trauma Group,” meaning the focus is on exploring useful ways to cope with common symptoms/challenges, and to discuss the different ways sexual assault impacts group members’ lives now instead of focusing directly on members’ stories or narratives of their experience. 

HEAL is a closed group, meaning once the group begins for the semester, new members are not added. This is done intentionally so that the group can serve as a safe and consistent environment for members to connect with one another over the course of the 7 or 8 weeks.  If HEAL is currently full but you have interest in joining future groups, please contact the co-facilitators seen above to be placed on the interest list.