Need Help Finding Help?

By Merely Me Wednesday, August 11, 2010

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Hi all

There have been many people who come to My Depression Connection requesting information about how to get mental health services when they have little to no insurance or little to no money.

I have been telling people to read a post I wrote last year entitled, "How Do I Get Mental Health Services with No Money and No Insurance." I scoured the Internet for any resource I could find to help. But from what I can glean is that some people are still having great difficulty finding sources of help.

There are many links given in the article so the first question I have is, have you tried all the links...or calling all the numbers given?

It is a horrible thing when you or your loved one needs help and the system is difficult to navigate. When you have no money or insurance it is even that much harder to find help. I am not going to lie to you. It is not easy. It is not fun. But just because it is hard doesn't mean you give up. I would implore you to keep trying.

I wanted to just relate a couple of my experiences to show that yes I understand where some of you are coming from. As a teen I had no insurance or money. My mother and I were barely scraping by on my mother's widow benefits and a minimum wage job I had at a bakery. During this time I was experiencing a very bad episode of depression. What I ended up doing was going to my local community center and there were grad students who offered counseling at a reduced cost. So even then I did have to pay something when I had nothing.

Even when you do have insurance, it can be difficult to find help. There was a time when I called a hotline and was given a number to call of a local mental health agency. I went to this agency the next day and of all the ironies I was turned away because I did have insurance. Unless I was wanting to volunteer to be inpatient they really did not have any resources for me. Still in crisis, I went to the local library, looked up mental health practitioners who were on my insurance plan. I dialed the numbers one by one. Many were not accepting new patients. Some could not see me for weeks. I opted to just "show up" at one therapy site, hoping I could plead to be seen soon. No such luck. Both therapists were on vacation. At the end of the day I thought to myself, "I might as well live as I have invested so much time to get help!" I ended up having to wait several weeks for an appointment with a therapist.

So I do understand. And I bet many of the members here understand your frustration with finding mental health help. It should not be this way but it is. I have been hung up on, been told to wait weeks or months, and so forth. Right now I am dealing with finding help for my son who has autism and needs a change of meds. We have been waiting for four months for an appointment with his pediatric neurologist because she is the only doctor in town with her credentials.

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Comments (13) | Add comment

jpw2008

8/11/10 5:08pm

hi MM

I was wondering why there are so many medical advertisements

If I try the medicine advertized will i feel better

Im saying people play mind games with you

The positive way to look at things is that there is someone to help

Its not always true

sometimes its not helpful

Jon

Merely Me

8/11/10 5:16pm

Hey Jon

What is not helpful? The medications? Advertisements? Or people in general?

I know Jon...sometimes it can seem that nothing helps. I honestly can't say if the meds would help...I am not taking any of them myself. But some people have good luck.

Tell us about your day. Hope things are going okay.

Anonymous

8/11/10 6:06pm

My therapist recently retired & she recommended a pdoc w/specialized training (EMDR) for the treatment of PTSD which my therapist has been using w/me & it has been helpful. I was shocked when I called the pdoc & found out she does not accept ANY insurance at all!! With the outrageous fees these pdocs charge & then to not accept any insurance is amazing to me. Only the rich who can pay out-of-pocket are "entitled" or "worthy" of receiving mental health treatment?

It is shocking also to try to find a provider in our network who is accepting new patients, as you said. Also due to my past trauma I need to see only female providers so that limits me further. My insurance co. even has a pdoc listed who has been dead for 9 mos. as being "in network." I know as I know his wife!! Another I called had her phone # disconnected & no new # listed.

Merely Me

8/11/10 6:20pm

wow...I don't know whether to laugh or cry at what you are saying...these examples are so disheartening...so the doc was deceased and still listed? geez

Yeah...it is a sad state of affairs as far as mental health care in this country...health care in general. Is it any wonder that so many people turn to the Internet for help? It is really difficult to find person to person help.

Not sure what the answers are...I just keep researching for any resources to give to people.

EMDR....Member Judy has used this therapy successfully...you guys should talk to one another.

Thanks so much for your comment.

Donna-1

8/11/10 6:16pm

I have asked both doctors and therapists how/where to get help like housing. Most have absolutely no idea -- I thought it would have been their job to know. One gave me the name of a woman who was running several homes for women with mental illness. When I went to be "interviewed" by this woman, found she was a scam artist and was promising much more than she could ever give. She took in really mentally ill women (and men, it turned out) in exchange for ALL the money they had coming from SSDI or SSI and any other income. When she realized I was intelligent and not so sick as some of the others, she asked me to babysit children in the afternoons and start a class on mental illness for her residents and teach it myself. While altruism is to be admired, there was no way in hell I was going to give her all my money then work for her on top of it. And it was in such a bad part of town that there were homeless men and drunks hanging out around at the back of the place. And every home on the block, except for this one (which the community had fixed up) was decrepit, made of unpainted wood, falling apart. So much for that.

My psychiatrist said, "Hmm just what is SSDI and SSI?" So I quickly gave up on his help.

Another therapist told me about an apartment complex that was 90% mentally ill residents and had a counselor on site at all times who checked on all the residents regularly and tried to make sure they were taking their meds. Turned out it was just as expensive as 2-bedroom apartments in a good part of town. And this place was located downtown in the hospital district. It was another really bad part of town where I would never feel safe outside my apartment. No long walks, no bike rides, no sitting on the porch, and no peace of mind.

After that, I decided it was not going to be worth the trouble to look for a "special" place anymore. And actually, I am doing quite well on my own. I hate it when people prey on the weak and sick.

Merely Me

8/11/10 6:26pm

That is something Donna...you must have felt so dissillusioned. That is the case pretty much...most homes for people with mental illness...they take the whole check and sometimes the person gets a few sundries...but not much. The level of care is...extremely variable.

From what you say...I think you are doing really well on your own and you have your freedom and independence. Just my opinion but I think you have made some wise choices.

Most docs are not going to know much about housing. Perhaps a social worker would though.

Thanks for sharing your experience. It is a scary world out there. You are doing well to protect yourself.

Anonymous

8/11/10 6:52pm

In my state they have a service where you can call 4-1-1 like 9-1-1 for emergencies to get help on all sorts of things like medical, insurance, housing, education needs, transportation, food, to report abuse or a crime of any sort, etc.

There is also a web site but I think it is individual for each state as it has the state's 2 letter abbreviation w/the #'s 411 in it.

It is free & a clearinghouse of sorts that coordinates all kinds of services in one place as people who need housing assistance often need insurance help, etc.

Also, w/the internet it is easier to find the agencies for disability (like the Disability Handbook that is written for the layperson; I have given the link to that several times on this site) & I do not think it is really the therapist's expertise to find housing or benefits for a client though many do out of the goodness of their hearts or because they have researched these matters.

Since my therapist's training was much more specialized w/EMDR I wanted to spend time doing THAT not something that I, myself, could find on the web or could ask for help from other people who had more knowledge about these issues.

It is discouraging to assist someone (this has happened to me several times) where I will spend many hours researching things such as getting free one-on-one reading instruction (free & the tutors will meet you close to your home) or where to get food or help paying rent or disability benefits or insurance or networking or retraining for a job or how to report inappropriate behavior by a professional, etc. & then the person doing NOTHING w/the info. or losing the pages of info. & then asking me to reprint all the info. or for me to call the contacts & basically do EVERYTHING for them. It is discouraging. I guess I set myself up for it by being TOO helpful. But recently when one person I was assisting lost all the info. I gave her & asked me to get it all again & resend it to her & I asked her what she was doing that afternoon & she said she was watching a movie & I was a bit resentful thinking, I wish I had time to watch a movie...

I don't know...

Merely Me

8/11/10 9:05pm

Hi again anonymous

Just to let you know...your efforts are always appreciated here. If you ever have the chance...I would like to see a link to the 411 information you are talking about...even if it is an example from a particular state.

That is the thing with giving any sort of help...you can extend your hand but the other person has to be willing to take your hand...and also to be responsible for following through. Actions speak louder than words...if someone doesn't accept the help...there isn't much you can do...and you are right...it is a de-incentive for going out of your way for that person again.

I would personally love to help anyone who needs help but...this is just a web site and...we are limited. We can give support, encouragement, information, resources...but beyond that...it is up to each individual to seek out the particular help they need whether that is getting a therapist...medication...a local support group, etc. There is no magic wand to cure people or make them happy.

Most of us have been in both positions as the helper...and the helpee. It is difficult to be in either role. I do look for genuineness in others...that they are taking some steps, however small, to help themselves. The difficult thing on a web site...is often we can't see those steps. I do look at someone coming here as a step towards growth...that the person does want to get better and get some help.

Anyways...I appreciate your comments and insights. I hope you continue to share your experience with us.

Anonymous

8/11/10 10:04pm

So sorry, the # is 2-1-1, not 4-1-1 as I wrote previously. The web site in my state is www.in211.org (for Indiana) & on that site they do have a link for other sites throughout the nation so, hopefully, it will be helpful for others.

So sorry for my mistakenly putting in the incorrect numbers previously!!!

Merely Me

8/11/10 10:09pm

This is really good information! THANK YOU!

I will include this in my post...this looks like a really good resource.

anne1123

8/12/10 12:24pm

I volunteer for a soup kitchen that has advocacy services for the poor. I gave the links you had previously posted to our Social Worker and she was appreciative. Getting services can really be a burden. Getting appointments; getting to see someone who really cares - this is all really a crap shoot sometimes and the person who wants help has to have some perserverence. This is why so many people fall through the cracks; they are just not capable of jumping all the hurdles.

Merely Me

8/12/10 1:08pm

Thanks Anne...I am glad the research I did was of use. It is extremely hard to find free services these days...or even reduced cost. You have to be persistent is right. Even the government sites place a disclosure on their information of links that...they can't be responsible for the links to outside agencies. Each person has to do their own research...make their own phone calls because everyone lives in a different geographic area where the resources may be different.

I am going to try to combine this post with last year's post and come up with a huge resource list. It is really important to me that people have somewhere to go for help.

Thanks again Anne for your comment.

Anonymous

8/12/10 1:17pm

We also have County "trustees" who provide funds (as in cash) for needy people, but you must be below a certain income level & the money is for paying bills, getting food, paying for health services, transportation, etc. I don't know if they require proof of how you spend the money, but they do require some proof of income level.

We also have an "Angel Network" through the churches for providing two-weeks worth of food for families that requires no proof of income or anything. You just need to go to a participating church & tell the size of your family & they give out boxes of balanced meals for two weeks.

The public library reference desk people here are actually excellent resources for finding out about these kinds of services!!

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