Mental Health Resources

Compiled by Alice Hua, PhD (she/her)

DISCLAIMER

Last updated: 07/03/2023

I started making this Google doc in 2020 when I noticed friends and acquaintances asking me how to find therapy or more resources for mental health. Since then, I’ve been updating it intermittently. I want to keep this doc active as a guide so others can continue to find whatever information may be helpful to them!

The information compiled below is intended to facilitate finding mental health resources. It is not a complete or comprehensive list by any means. While information on these topics can be helpful for understanding more about you and your mental health, they are not a replacement for therapy itself.

CRISIS RESOURCES (credit to Inclusive Therapists for compilation)

Please note that some crisis line workers are mandated to report plans of suicide to the police. If this is a concern, ask about their reporting policies before sharing. Please reach out to community leaders, neighbors, friends, and family to be present if you are calling the police.

Crisis Lines:

  • National Suicide Lifeline
  • Call 988
  • Text "NAMI" TO 741741
  • National Domestic Violence Hotline
  • (800) 799-7233
  • Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN)
  • (800) 656- 4673
  • Veterans Crisis Line
  • (800) 273-8255
  • National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline
  • (800) 656-4673
  • Alcoholism & Drug Dependency Hope Line
  • (800) 622-2255

External Resources:

  • Call or text Blackline: peer support and counseling prioritizing BIPOC, with an LGBTQ+ Black Femme Lens. "We do not trace or send any type of intervention under any circumstances without consent."
  • 800-604-5841
  • Trans Lifeline: trans peer support for trans community that’s been divested from police since day one. Run by and for trans people.
  • US 877-565-8860
  • Canada 877-330-6366
  • 888-407-4515
  • 7pm to 9pm Monday through Thursday
  • 7pm-10pm Friday through Sunday
  • 800-273-8255
  • Lines for Life also offers support for: military & family, senior loneliness, teen-to-teen crisis help, and racial equity support.
  • 866-488-7386
  • Text "START" to 678678

If you or someone you know is in immediate, life-threatening danger and decide to call 911, please be aware that police are not equipped to offer mental health support and may even pose danger to People of Color, Neurodivergent people, and Disabled people.

REMINDER

Taking care of your mental health is a process and a practice. There is so much value in learning more about yourself, identifying your values, and knowing how you ultimately want to live your life authentically to you. Everyone deserves to be acknowledged in their full human dignity. Everyone has inherent worthiness. Societal expectations and oppressive systems (white supremacy, capitalism, cis-hetero patriarchy) that teach you otherwise are important to name, process, and address.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CUsQ6oRgb8j/?utm_medium=copy_link 

ABOUT THERAPY

https://www.instagram.com/p/CCQ5_QzjhCO/?igshid=1ra5eeszqlobx 

Over time, myths and stigma around therapy have been decreasing. But misconceptions and stigma around therapy are still very much mainstream and harmful.

General information about therapy:

  • Regardless of what is or isn’t happening in your life, you can benefit from therapy. Many seek therapy for depression, anxiety, etc. Many seek therapy for major life transitions or help with learning how to balance several responsibilities. People can get help about how to go through their everyday lives in a way that's most helpful to them.
  • Therapy is helpful for understanding your thoughts, emotions, behaviors, and how they're all linked. Sometimes we develop a pattern that has served us well up until a certain point. It's important to update that information. It can also be validating to learn more about the contexts that shaped these patterns — it’s often hard to recognize them when you’re living it. Therapy can be a way to acknowledge those contexts and have the language to label them.
  • Asking for help is a starting point for feeling better. Therapy doesn't mean you have failed. Having the courage to reach out for help is a sign of strength.
  • Therapy can be collaborative. This isn’t about “fixing” you. This is about what you want (i.e., therapy goals) and how a therapist can help you work towards those goals.
  • Therapists are not experts in giving you life advice -- rather they are trained in facilitating insight, learning, recognizing your strengths, and helpful behavior change.
  • Therapy is confidential. There are limits to that confidentiality though (if you or someone is in immediate danger), and that is discussed with your therapist during the first session (through a formal process of consent).

That said, talk therapy isn’t the only way to tend to your mental health. Research shows that access to resources and engagement in health behaviors (which influence each other too) influence psychological health, including economic wealth, belonging with and being part of a community, sleep, exercise, volunteering, creative expression, etc. While individual therapy can emphasize the role of a person’s behaviors in their concerns, it’s important to recognize the role of systemic factors in mental health too.

However, I do believe that with a therapist who’s the right fit for you, you can gain a greater awareness and understanding of yourself that can amplify the effects of other behavioral practices that improve your mental health.

HOW TO LOOK FOR THERAPY

Databases

You can look for therapists by zip code, therapy approach, whether or not they take insurance, etc. See below for different databases. Inclusive therapists understand that all forms of systemic oppression (e.g., racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism) are all forms of trauma. Inclusive therapists understand that cultural humility is applied to every single client, dyad, or family they see.

Big databases:

Through insurance:

  • Go to your insurance website to find in-network providers. Or use the following databases to search by insurance!
  • Octave: Anthem Blue Cross, Aetna, Health Net, MHN, UMR
  • Alma: Aetna, Cigna, UnitedHealthcare, Oscar, Oxford Health Plan, Empire - Blue Cross Blue Shield
  • Grow Therapy: Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna, Aetna, Optum, UnitedHealthcare, Blue Shield California
  • Headway: Aetna, Anthem, Cigna, Oxford, UnitedHealthcare, Oscar
  • Two Chairs: Aetna and Kaiser Permanente Northern CA
  • Foresight: Aetna, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, Beacon, Cigna, Humana, Kaiser Permanente, United Healthcare, Optum
  • Path Mental Health: Aetna, Anthem Blue Cross, Kaiser Permanente of Southern California, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna Health Plans, Health Net, Medical Mutual, MHN, Optum, Oscar, UMR, United Healthcare, All Savers, Allegiance, Allied, Bind, Coastal TPA, GEHA, Meritain, Nippon Life Insurance Company, Oxford Health Plans, Pinnacle Claims Management, Sierra Health and Life, Sutter Health, Trustmark Health Benefits, Vivity by Anthem, Web TPA, Western Growers Insurance
  • TalkDoc: Medi-Cal and Medicaid

Low cost out of pocket:

Different therapy degrees

  • Master’s degree in clinical or counseling psychology - M.A./M.S.
  • Social Work - MSW or PhD
  • Marriage and Family Therapist - MFT
  • Doctorate of Psychology, Professional degree - PsyD
  • Doctoral degree in either clinical or counseling psychology - PhD
  • Medical degree with a specialty in psychiatry - MD
  • Perhaps this is my own bias, but it’s worth mentioning that psychiatrists’ primary training is in medication management. Not all psychiatrists are necessarily extensively trained in psychotherapy, but some are!

Where to get services

  • Therapists’ individual or group private practice.
  • University affiliated counseling services usually offer a limited number of free sessions to students.
  • Hospitals, community clinics, etc. with a behavioral health, psychiatry, or mental health branch.
  • Check out John Oliver’s coverage of Mental Healthcare on digital mental health apps/services

Who can be your therapist?

  • As part of our training, therapists learn about the concept of ‘dual roles’ or ‘multiple relationships’ which refer to having a professional relationship in addition to another relationship with someone. They are not inherently unethical but are asked to be avoided when harm can be done.
  • For example, ethically, I can’t work with my friends or close loved ones as my clients. Sorry friends and loved ones! Because of an existing non-professional relationship, my ability to work with friends or close loved ones professionally would be biased (lack of ‘objectivity’ due to history) and the boundaries between the dual roles are easily blurred in a potentially harmful way.
  • It’s also recommended that therapists don’t work with clients who are close loved ones (family, friends) of friends, since this may also present some ethical challenges regarding professional duties and upholding confidentiality. This depends on each case, but the main idea is to limit impaired ‘objectivity’ on the therapist’s end for their client.
  • You may also think, ‘Oh, my friend has a great therapist! I should work with that therapist too!’ This in and of itself is not unethical, since the therapist won’t disclose information to you or your friend about the other person’s therapy. However, if you and your friend are close and have conflict, which then gets brought up in therapy, this may present some challenges for your therapist. It’s the same reason the same therapist is disencouraged to work with both individuals from a couple or different family members as separate clients.
  • Another note: Couples therapists specifically treat the relationship! You might wonder about ethics if the couples therapist is working with the couple and then one person separately. It’s generally recommended that couples therapists work with the couple, and then persons from the couple work with separate therapists if they want individual therapy. Same thing for families!
  • So! Who can be your therapist? Ideally someone who doesn’t already have close connections with you or someone close to you. This is to protect the work in the therapeutic context and definitely helps to avoid some awkward scenarios!
  • Ethics Code: https://www.apa.org/monitor/jan04/ethics 

How to pay for it

  • Out of pocket
  • It’s possible for therapists in private practice to give you a super bill that you can file for reimbursement later with insurance. Make sure to ask!
  • Therapists are also trying to problem-solve issues with insurance, so some may offer a way for you to reduce your direct pay if you have insurance so you don’t have to file for reimbursement yourself. Feel free to ask.
  • Some clinics are sliding scale and base the fee on income. If you have other limitations to paying fees beyond income (e.g., medical bills, etc.), consider asking for a fee reduction.
  • Through your insurance. You may have a small co-pay for each session.
  • If your work has mental health benefits, you may get sessions covered through EAPs such as Lyra, Modern Health, Spring Health, Ginger, etc.

For those of you who can afford therapy: if you notice feelings of discomfort or guilt around paying for mental services, check in with that. Often we de-prioritize our mental health because we think it’s secondary to our physical health. The reality is that mental and physical health are not mutually exclusive and actually meaningfully influence each other.

Other things to check in with:

  • If this were an advised procedure by my physician, would I think differently about it?
  • What if I treated mental health as an investment in my future?

At the same time, I want to acknowledge the very real and significant social and economic barriers (that are maintained by systems of oppression) to mental health care services. Unfortunately, based on the way our society is structured, access to mental health services is a privilege. In the databases above, some therapists specify that they provide low-cost services to those in need. Support groups may also be available for free or at a low-cost.

Reflection before the first session

  • What do you want to learn about yourself? For couples or family counseling: What do you want to learn about your relationship or family dynamic?
  • How will you know therapy is helpful? (e.g., when you develop skills to manage anxiety, when you recognize old patterns of behavior that no longer serve you, etc.)
  • What kind of help do you want?
  • Do you want to talk out loud and have a therapist facilitate insight? Or do you want someone who can help you build concrete skills? Or maybe some combination of both?
  • Does your therapist’s identity matter to you?
  • Does it matter to you that their healing is centered in social justice?
  • What questions do you have for your therapist during the first session?
  • Examples:
  • How often do you work with ____ clients? When was the last time you worked with someone similar to me?
  • How do you apply cultural humility in your work?
  • How do you apply radical healing to your work?
  • How do you decolonize (de-center Western or White biases) therapy?  
  • How often do you name systemic influences on mental health problems?
  • How would you describe your therapy approach? (More directive or less directive?)
  • How often would you anticipate seeing me?
  • How do you help clients with therapy goals?

Reflection after the first session (or first few sessions)

It’s important that you find a therapist that you trust and feel comfortable with! Feel free to “shop” around in the beginning. You do not need to continue with a therapist if you do not feel safe. Your relationship with your therapist is important for healing and skill building. The strength of the relationship you have with your therapist is critical for the work, so it's important to find a therapist who is a good fit for you.

  • Do you feel emotionally and physically safe?
  • Do you feel heard and understood?
  • Does it seem like you can trust this person?
  • Does the therapist seem empathetic to your situation?
  • Do they seem genuinely curious about your story?
  • Do you think they ask good questions?
  • Do you feel like you learned something about yourself already?
  • Does their approach (less directive or more directive) align with what you want?

(Very) General differences in types of therapy

Some therapists are familiar with and use a mix of all of the approaches below. They might call their approach “integrative.” There are so many names for different approaches, and this is not a comprehensive list at all!

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) - therapists teach mindfulness skills to help you live and behave in ways consistent with your personal values while developing psychological flexibility.  

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) - therapists with this approach tend to offer more concrete skills that are evidence-based (e.g., supported by research). A helpful CBT therapist will collaborate with you on your therapy goals and your weekly “homework” assignments to help build skills toward whatever it is you’re working on.

  • Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) is short-term therapy to improve sleep efficiency and quality by learning cognitive and behavioral skills

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) - therapists with this approach are trained in working with folks who have severe emotional dysregulation, suicidal ideation, and self-harm behaviors. They are specifically trained to build important skills to help folks feel less like they’re going from crisis to crisis.

Psychological framework for radical healing - evidence-based practices that promote individual and collective healing from systems of oppression, including (a) collectivism, (b) critical consciousness, (c) radical hope, (d) strength and resistance, and (e) cultural authenticity and self-knowledge

Psychodynamic - therapists with this approach are usually less agenda-focused and want you to bring your own agenda to the table; they will help you garner more insight into what you’re talking about and maybe help you learn a broader narrative about yourself.

How to ‘break up’ with your therapist

There may be a number of different reasons why you no longer want to work with your current therapist, including:

  • The work you’ve done together has helped you get to a place in your life where therapy feels less necessary
  • The fit was initially really helpful to you at the beginning of therapy and you’re starting to notice that you wish the fit was better for topics you haven’t discussed before
  • The fit hasn’t felt right to you and you’re pretty sure you would like to find someone new
  • You have access to different mental health services now and would like therapy to be covered under different benefits

The list goes on!

Therapists understand that they are ultimately trying to put themselves out of a job. If you and your therapist have done some great work together, and you’re feeling ready to implement the things you’ve learned without a therapist, it’s common to have a ‘last session’ to summarize the work together. Check in with them about this! It’s a helpful way for you and your therapist to discuss what worked, what could have been better, etc. You can also ask about seeking their services at a later point if you feel they could be helpful to you if you need a ‘booster session’ or extra support at a different time.

Therapists also know that the relationship/alliance between a clinician and their client is a crucial ingredient of the work. If you feel as though the fit was initially really helpful to you and no longer is, it’s fair and valid to bring this up during session and to provide feedback. If you are open to the idea of continuing on with them after you can address issues related to fit, let them know that.

If you are clear on seeking a new therapist for a better fit, you can let them know in session (with someone you’re comfortable with and have worked with for a while) or write them a message (with someone you’re less comfortable with, maybe have not worked with for a while).

For those who want to bring up something in session about fit and are open to continuing with the same therapist:

  • I have been reflecting on our sessions together, and I want to ask some questions related to your experience in working with _____, which is something I would like to explore moving forward. I’m curious if working together is still a good fit for my needs.
  • I appreciate the work we’ve done together on _____, which has been helpful. I noticed that therapy has felt less helpful for ______. I would like to keep working together if we can address _____.

For those who are looking for a new therapist:

  • I have been reflecting on our sessions together, and I believe I could benefit from working with someone who may be a better fit for my needs. [Add extra detail if you want] [Thank them if you want]
  • It’s important for me to use mental health benefits to cover the costs of services. Unfortunately, unless you are able to provide services through ____, my plan is to look for a new therapist. [Thank them if you want]

Of course, another option is to not tell your therapist these things! At the same time, it may be less awkward in the short/long-run if you can address this directly with them.

INSTAGRAM ACCOUNTS

Grow more comfortable with information about mental health on your feed.

PHONE APPS

Helpful for a mental health break or momentary reset during the day. We live in an attention economy, and it’s easy to go through an entire day without checking in with your body and mind. The concept of mindfulness derives from Buddhist practices that share the idea of how suffering often comes from being too much in the past or in the future, rather than the present.

Mindfulness is about choosing where you bring your attention so you can live more intentionally.

  • Oak (free)
  • Liberate (by and for Black, Indigenous, and other people of color)
  • Shine (includes meditations voiced by Black women)
  • Calm (free and premium versions)
  • Headspace (subscription based)

BLOGS AND ARTICLES AND MEDIA COVERAGE

Specific blogs/articles

Podcasts

Podcasts that normalize talking about mental health.

Books

John Oliver’s Last Week Tonight Episodes on Mental Healthcare