Schae Richards, community editor
Tom Roskos is a licensed counseling psychologist at Bear River Mental Health. He enjoys helping people and learning about the human mind.
Tom grew up in the Midwest, and moved to Cache Valley to complete a doctoral internship at Utah State University. Once he completed his schooling, he and his wife stayed in Cache Valley to pursue their careers.
He started his career by working for Avalon Hills, an eating disorder center in Cache Valley, from 2012 to 2015. He then joined the Bear River Mental Health team in September 2015.
Tom wears many hats at his job. A typical day at work consists of scheduled therapy sessions with individuals, couples, and families, and crisis therapy and psychological assessments.
In addition, he interacts and works with the students at Ellis Elementary once a week. He also speaks on eating disorders, counseling skills and community mental health in different educational settings.
Tom enjoys helping every person who walks through his door and is committed to helping them with their needs.
He said his favorite part of his job is watching people make positive changes in their lives.
“Watching somebody make that discovery on their own, and watching them change and taking credit or ownership of their own process,” he said.
An interesting part of his job is that there’s always something else that needs to be done, whether it’s taking another phone call or seeing another client.
“There’s always something else to be done,” he said. “. . . There’s always going to be another opportunity.”
In terms of family relationships, Tom said effective communication is important to establish in any family relationship.
“Figuring out ways to communicate and to be as authentic, vulnerable, and respectful as possible in the best trusting relationship that you can muster,” he said.
When talking about child and adolescent mental health, Tom points out a few warning signs that someone’s child may be struggling with depression or anxiety.
Warning signs of depression may include someone who has had a change in their regular routine; they are not interested in the same things as they used to be; they are looking or coming across as depressed; and if they are having feelings of hopelessness.
Warning signs of anxiety may include someone who has had a big change in the amount of time spent in activities; they seem like they have no joy; or they feel like they’re stuck in a rut of worry.
If any of these signs persist for more than two weeks, the person should make an appointment with their primary physician.
Tom said there are several local resources that people can reach out to and utilize to help them make positive changes.
“People are capable of growth,” he said. “They can make changes.”
Some of these resources include the following: Bear River Mental Health, Cache Valley Community Health, Cache Youth Center, Midtown Community Health, LDS Family Services, and The Family Place. People are also encouraged to talk to their primary physician to address any possible concerns.
Bear River Mental Health is launching a mobile crisis outreach team this summer that will offer in-home crisis intervention to children and young adults and their families.
Tom said the longer he works in this field, the more he learns about himself.
“It’s a unique field,” he said. “The more I work with people, the more I understand myself and what it means to be human and to be me.”
