Types of Mental Health Care

Mental Health Awareness Month is an annual U.S. acknowledgment of the importance of mental health treatment with the hopes of destigmatizing those with mental health needs. Observed in May since 1949, this month provides the perfect backdrop to highlight the most common mental health treatments available.

Individual, Family, Child, and Couples Therapy

Psychotherapy is confidential sessions, wherein a therapist will help you explore and understand your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, and how you can proactively take steps to feel better.

Clinicians have a variety of different titles, depending on your state. They may be marriage and family therapists, licensed clinical social workers, or licensed professional clinical counselors. Some specialize in drug and alcohol treatment, trauma, or eating disorders. Others may specialize in specific interventions like art therapy, music therapy, biofeedback, or EMDR.

Some clinicians focus solely on adult talk therapy. Others may treat families, children, or couples. Clinicians who work with couples and families are considered to be treating the whole family, or both people in a couple. Often they will discuss “no secrets” policies with their patients.

If you find a clinician that is covered by your insurance panel, often their treatment is short-term, collaborative, and result-oriented. Most therapists, however, do not take insurance, because the insurance will often dictate the length of treatment.

Medication is not prescribed with this form of treatment.

Psychological Testing

Psychological testing consists of one-on-one, confidential appointments with a psychologist for an evaluation to rule out specific mental health disorders, including ADHD and Autism Spectrum Disorder. Though psychologists can also provide traditional talk therapy, most do not.

You may be referred to a psychologist for testing for a profession. Some jobs require pre-employment testing, including cognitive ability tests or personality tests.

Otherwise, you must be referred for testing to rule-out a disorder by your school or your primary care doctor. You will also want to check, once the referral is received, that the tests are covered by your insurance plan. Some insurance companies won’t cover certain testing, such as a rule-out for depression, because this can be diagnosed by a therapist.

Medication is not prescribed with this form of treatment.

Psychiatry

Psychiatry consists of one-on-one, confidential appointments with a psychiatrist, nurse practitioner, or physician assistant who specializes in mental health treatment, including diagnosing mental health conditions and prescribing medications. Some will even prescribe medication for additional treatment, including opioid and alcohol addiction.

Often individuals may utilize their primary care doctor to manage their medication, but more and more doctors are denying requests to prescribe mental health medication, citing a lack of scope.

These providers do not do traditional talk therapy. Appointments are similar to an exam with your primary care doctor. Follow-up appointments with your psychiatrist may only last 15 to 30 minutes. Therefore, if you believe you need talk therapy, you should meet with a therapist for this treatment.

If you believe you need mental health medication to manage your mental health condition, you can be referred to a psychiatrist by your primary care doctor or your insurance. Be sure to check with your insurance regarding what medications are covered, so you are prepared to talk about options with your psychiatrist.

Medication is prescribed with this form of treatment.

Group Therapy

Group therapy consists of meetings where members with similar experiences or conditions gather to support each other, often led by mental health professionals. They all work together to reach common wellness goals. It’s an opportunity to learn from and connect with others.

This form of treatment can also be mandated by the courts. Courts may require someone to attend a drug and alcohol support group or an anger management group.

These sessions should be confidential. That being said, relationships are often formed and broken by members, which can cause an accidental or intentional breach of confidentiality. If you are seeking this form of treatment, be sure to ask the professional running it what measures are in place to maintain confidentiality, and what happens to group members who break it.

These sessions should also be run by a mental health professional, but some are run by peer leaders who manage the group through lived experience. Those groups may not be covered by your insurance plan because there isn’t someone licensed, or working towards licensure, running the group.

Medication is not prescribed with this form of treatment.

Health Classes

Health classes are programs taught by trained instructors, designed to help you strengthen relationships, change unhealthy thinking and behavior, cope with stress, and more. Some are taught by mental health professionals, while others are taught by leaders in that specific subject.

These classes may include stress management, nutritional and dietary training, wellness coaching, or mommy-baby bonding. They can be found at hospitals, clinics, and local community centers.

Most health classes are not covered by an insurance unless taught at a covered hospital or by providers in their network.

Medication is not prescribed with this form of treatment.

Finding The Right Provider

This isn’t a comprehensive list of all forms of treatment. Some people may need someone who specializes in somatic therapy, others may need Applied Behavior Analysis, and others may need equine assisted therapy. In the end it is vital to remember that good treatment is dependent on a good relationship with your provider. If you find that you and your provider aren’t connecting, it’s okay to find another one. That doesn’t mean that you can’t be helped or the treatment isn’t right for you, it just means that you need to “shop around” until you find the right provider and treatment modality that works for you.

Also remember that you may need more than one type of treatment. This is okay. It means you need a larger support system to help you manage your mental health related disorder.

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