With depression, substance use, and suicide rates climbing, we need to look at new and evolving ways of providing mental health services. The people who need therapy are often not going in to the places where it is being offered – private practices, clinics, etc. One thing we can do is look at who is and isn’t going to therapy and how we can reduce the barriers for people to get in. The other thing we can do is take mental health out of the office and to the places where people ARE. Schools, workplaces, homes, doctors’ offices – these are the places where people are going, and they all need to be infused with mental health messages, information, support, and options.
When we expect people to come in to an office for therapy, we’re basically saying that we only want to treat people with privilege – those who have the privilege of transportation, of flexible work and family hours, of money to pay co-pays and big deductibles (or – could we be more entitled? – self-pay only!), and also, the privilege of being able to walk into an unknown business environment and talk to a stranger about their most vulnerable inner thoughts and feelings – without overwhelming and often historical fear. Each one of these ignored privileges discounts thousands of people, especially those who could most benefit from mental health therapy because of these very reasons.
Taking mental health to nontraditional places helps more people be aware of their and others’ mental health. We also need to offer therapy in nontraditional ways, and often this means using technology that people are already using. Therapy by text, chat, video, and email are all ways to reduce the barriers for people who need mental health support but are not going to go in to an office to get it. While many “classically trained” therapists think these modes of communication are disingenuous or don’t lead to real connection and therapeutic environment – and they may be right. But it gets therapy to more people, and to people who might not otherwise see you, so why not focus on that rather than our righteous beliefs about what therapy “should be.” We need to evolve as a profession to be where the people are, rather than expecting them to come to us. We hope you’ll join us in taking mental health out of the office, and into the world.
