Many people who have suicidal thoughts or other challenges need psychotherapy, but cannot afford it. There are options, though, for receiving therapy without giving up other necessities or going into debt. Here are a dozen:
1. Contact your health insurance company, if you have insurance.
Most health insurance companies in the U.S. are required to cover some degree of mental health treatment. Your insurance company can link you with a therapist whose services they cover. If you have Medicare or Medicaid, contact your local office for help. Be warned, though, that many therapists don’t accept insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid, and those who do may have a wait time of several weeks or months.
2. Go to a community mental health center.
These non-profit agencies usually are funded by local government or by revenue from Medicaid and Medicare. To find one in your area, call 211 (or go to the online search tool for 211) or SAMHSA’s National Helpline at 800-662-HELP (4357).
3. Go to a community health center.
Community health centers offer preventive and primary care at no charge to people who meet certain (low) income requirements. Many centers offer integrated care, where mental health and substance use professionals work with patients in primary care settings. To find a community health center near you, go to the HRSA Find a Center site.
4. Look for a therapist who works on a sliding scale.
Many therapists will reduce their fee according to clients’ ability to pay. Therapists who list their information on The Psychology Today Therapist Finder site indicate whether they offer a sliding scale. You can also can therapists individually and ask them if they adjust their fees for people who do not have insurance and cannot afford the full fee.
5. Search for “pro bono” or low-cost therapy in your area.
Many agencies and private therapists offer free or very low-cost therapy to people with low income. For example, some Mental Health America chapters have a network of therapists who provide therapy at no cost to people who cannot afford it.
You can also contact the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill’s helpline, at 800-950-NAMI (6264) or info@nami.org, for names of places that offer free or low-cost therapy.
Or call 211 for referrals. (Not all places in the U.S. have 211 service, but most do.)
6. See if there’s a psychotherapy or psychiatry training clinic near you.
Universities and medical schools usually have training clinics that provide therapy at steeply discounted rates. If you have a university or medical school in town, contact the departments of clinical psychology, counseling psychology, professional psychology, psychiatry, social work, professional counseling, and marriage and family therapy. Even if they don’t have a training clinic, they might have referrals to low-cost services.
7. Check with social service agencies.
You might be surprised at the variety of agencies that provide psychotherapy, including agencies that serve people who are homeless, refugees, immigrants, older adults, gay and lesbian youth, and more. In various cities, some religious agencies, such as Jewish Family Services and Catholic Charities, also offer therapy.
8. Try a service that offers access to low-cost therapists.
OpenPath Collective, for example, lists therapists who charge $30-$60 session. The service charges $49 a year to join. Participating therapists agree to charge the lower rates for OpenPath members.
9. If you’re a student, contact your school or university to see what mental health services they provide.
Children and adolescents receive mental health services more from schools than anywhere else. Universities usually have counseling centers that offer a certain number of free sessions to students.
10. See if your workplace has an EAP.
Short for “employee assistance program,” an EAP provides counseling and therapy to companies’ employees. Your company pays for the service, not you. These sessions are usually quite limited in number.
11. Use online therapy.
Online therapy services have their pros and cons, but they tend to be less expensive than private, face-to-face therapy, and often therapists are more available. Online companies to look into include TalkSpace and BetterHelp.
12. Try group therapy.
Typically offered by therapists in private practice or at agencies, group therapy sessions tend to last longer and cost less than individual therapy.
Do you have other suggestions to share? If so, please leave a comment below.
In addition to using my own ideas, I also drew from the following articles for this post:
Here’s What To Do If You Can’t Afford Therapy
What to Do When You Can’t Afford Therapy
What to Do If You Can’t Afford Therapy, According to an Expert
Copyright 2019 by Stacey Freedenthal, PhD, LCSW. Written for SpeakingOfSuicide.. All Rights Reserved.
$60-$90 a session (or per week for Better help) is not affordable. I have insurance, but I can’t afford to pay $320/month for weekly sessions that I SO, SO desperately need.
Also, sliding scale clinics are only helpful for people who are extremely poor (since the poverty line is abysmally low). For those of us who have more expenses/mouths to feed, they see the income and disqualify me (I do not make a lot of money, I am just not in “poverty.”)
I wouldn’t bother seeking therapy, can’t afford it