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Counseling and Psychological Services
IN CRISIS

Group Therapy

We provide more than 20 different psychotherapy groups that allow you to receive between one to two hours of therapy each week over the course of each semester. Three-quarter-time, day-time students (enrolled for 9 or more semester hours) are eligible to join a group, and there are no session limits for group therapy.

To Join a Group

If you would like to join a group and you have not attended a session at CAPS in the last 6 months, please click here to fill out our intake paperwork. Then call 801-422-3035 and request a Quick Care appointment to get a recommendation from a CAPS therapist to be added to a group.

If you would like to join a group and you have attended a session at CAPS in the last 6 months, please contact your therapist by phone (801-422-3035) or email to request to be placed in a group.

Groups Available

A variety of group therapy experiences are offered at CAPS and have been shown (in research from our own center) to be just as effective as individual therapy (see here). These groups can be either structured or unstructured and offer the students opportunities to learn from their peers and group leaders.

Fall 2024 Groups:

  • Anxiety
  • Autism
  • Compassion Focused Therapy 1 (CFT)
  • Compassion Focused Therapy 2 (CFT 2)
  • DACA/Dreamers
  • Dungeons & Dragons
  • Eating/Body Image
  • Mindfulness Meditation
  • Motivation
  • Multicultural General Process
  • OCD Exposure and Response Prevention
  • Perfectionism
  • Reconciling Faith & Sexuality
  • Understanding Self and Others (USO)

Group Descriptions

Term-Length Groups (6 weeks)

Anxiety – Mini

  • A brief group for students with anxiety. Sessions include education about anxiety, training in ways to manage anxiety, sharing about life experiences, and relating to others in their anxiety.

Motivation - Mini

  • A brief psychoeducational and experiential group for students wishing to increase their motivation. Sessions include psychoeducation, discussion, reflection, planning, and practice of specific techniques or skills related to the session’s topic.

OCD & Anxiety Basics

  • A brief group for students noticing symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) or anxiety or both. Sessions include education, practice managing symptoms and behaviors, as well as relating to others with similar experiences.

Perfectionism – Mini

  • A brief group for students with perfectionism. Sessions include education with specific topics each week, sharing experiences, relating to other students, and learning strategies for managing perfectionism in more adaptive ways.

Sexual Concerns – Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (SC-ACT) – Mini

  • A brief group for students with compulsive sexual behaviors. Sessions include practicing psychological flexibility to live a more values-centered life. Ideal for those who want to try out brief group therapy before committing to a full semester.

Semester-Length Groups

Autism

  • A group for students with autism to discuss lived experiences, explore and answer questions with each other, and connect with other students on the spectrum.

DACA/Dreamers

  • A group for students who identify with Dreamer status to share experiences, relate to other students, and explore the unique challenges of being a Dreamer university student.

Dating and Relationship Concerns

  • A group for students to explore concerns related to dating and creating strong relationships. Sessions include some education and relating through discussion.

Eating/Body Image

  • A group for students concerned about their eating behaviors, body image, and/or relationships with food. Sessions include structured activities, exploring the impact and harm of diet culture, relating to other students, and improving relationships with food.

Grief & Loss

  • A group for students who have recently experienced a significant loss. Sessions include some education about grief, sharing experiences, relating to others, and processing bereavement.

OCD Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP)

  • A group for students with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). Sessions include some education, sharing experiences, relating to others, and practicing the gold-standard treatment for OCD of exposure to obsessions and preventing the response of compulsions.

Out-of-Control Sexual Behaviors (OCSB)

  • A group for students who feel out of control regarding sexual behavior. Sessions include accountability in making and keeping agreements with oneself and the group and working toward one’s vision for sexual health.

Multicultural General Process

  • A group for students who are Black, Indigenous, or People of Color to relate to other BIPOC folks regarding lived experiences, racial stress, and unique challenges at BYU.

Reconciling Faith & Sexuality

  • A group for students who identify as LGBTQIA+ or who experience same-sex attraction. Sessions include sharing experiences, relating to other students, and exploring how sexuality intersects with faith in a context that honors agency and promotes psychological health.

Sexual Concerns – Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (SC-ACT)

  • A group for students with unwanted compulsive sexual behaviors. Sessions include education regarding sexuality, using ACT metaphors to shift perspectives, exploration of values, sharing experiences, and relating to other group members.

Groups with Specific Styles of Therapy (all semester-length groups)


Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT)

  • A group for students who tend to be harshly self-critical. Sessions include education about the human brain, guided meditations, experiences of compassion to and from others and the self, and practicing skills, habits, and mindsets of compassion.

CFT 2

  • A group for students who have previously participated in a CFT group or compassionate living STDEV class. Sessions include continued practice with the flows of compassion, guided meditations, relating to other members, and connecting through lived experiences.

Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) Therapy

  • A group for students to connect with others using D&D gameplay and interpersonal exploration. Sessions include building a therapeutic character, trying out new ways of being in-game, drawing parallels from gameplay to real life, and processing the experience afterward.

Mindfulness Meditation

  • A group for students with a variety of concerns to learn and practice mindfulness and meditation. Sessions include training in guided meditations, imagery exercises, and mindfulness followed by discussion of life experiences, relating to other members.

Understanding Self and Others (USO)

  • A group for students with a variety of concerns to explore relationships with the self and other group members. Sessions include the here-and-now use of the group as a “social laboratory” to try out new ways of being, ask for and receive feedback, connect meaningfully with other members, and share experiences.