Local & Community Resources

Since government programs usually require you to qualify in some way to access their services they won’t work for everyone. If you happen to fall into that category there are still plenty of ways to try and find some free therapy or counseling…and if not free, to at least try to reduce the cost. Instead of using healthcare or the government we’ll turn to the community.

Universities & Colleges

Becoming a licensed mental health worker requires a lot of education and that should always includes a graduate degree. However, that’s not all it takes. Both during graduate school and after therapists, psychologists, LPCCs, and social workers are all required to accrue a certain number of training hours. This requirement varies state to state and by licensing agency but it also provides you with a great opportunity to access therapy at a discounted rate.

If you have a university or college in your town check to see what free therapy services it might offer you! The therapists in training there need to get their hours and training so they often provide therapy session for free or at a nominal charge. If you’re a student there you might be able to receive a limited number of free sessions or certainly for a very low fee. Even if you aren’t a student there is a good chance that you might be able to get reduced services as well. Some larger universities also have a community center that is specifically designed to focus on people who live near by but are not students.

Training Centers

Therapists in training have a variety of titles but you should become familiar with them and search for them in your area. A broad and commonly used term is “pre-licensed” this covers all therapists that are either in school or still training but have not completed all the requirements to become licensed. However, each field and stage also has their own titles. A person who is in school to become a therapist might be called a trainee, while some one who has completed graduate school but not completed their training may be called an intern, assistant, or associate. Using these terms you can search through listings of therapists to find who might offer lower rates or search in your area to find a training center.

Sometimes this can even work with professionals who are licensed. If someone who is licensed desires to get a new certification,  specialization, or even another degree they are often required to go through a certain amount of “training” again to get it. These training hours should be discounted from that person’s normal rate. In this case you can get a serious discount and work with someone who is licensed, experienced, and well trained. It’s a win win.

Churches & Religious Centers

Caring for people is at the center of many of the worlds religions and because of that many churches and religious centers provide various free counseling services. Call around and see if any of the religious organizations in your area offer counseling service (maybe start with the larger ones). Then you can ask if spirituality is always incorporated into their counseling or whether the counselors can adopt a more neutral stance. You’ll also want to check and see what kind of training the counselors receive there which can vary greatly across the spectrum. Some churches might have their own counseling center with licensed therapists or therapists in training…or it could be just very well intentioned people with very little training.

Do some research to make sure it’s a good fit for you but if you need help it could be a good and accessible resource.