Vet Centers are community mental health clinics for Veterans who typically are eligible if they served in a war zone or were sexually assaulted in the military.
If you aren’t eligible for VA Health Care then your options will depend on your income. If you are working you might be have the option to be seen by someone briefly in the Employee Assistance Program associated with your work or through any private health care you may have (separate from VA Health Care) Another option is to locate a therapist in private practice.
If you aren’t eligible for VA Health Care and also do not have an income, you can reach out to a nearby graduate schools in social work, psychology or marriage and family therapy. They may have a low or no fee clinic staffed by their students under the supervision of faculty associated with the program, for which you might be eligible.
Getting an appointment for mental health care these days can be difficult for Veterans and civilians alike. I would expect that you will hit a few roadblocks in your attempt to get help. They can be frustrating, but don’t let the initial roadblocks discourage you! It will be worth the effort.
Keith Armstrong LCSW is a recently-retired Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), who worked with veterans for 38 years, and served as a mentor and contributor to the Heart and Armor team since 2013. He is the co-author of the acclaimed book “Courage After Fire: Coping Strategies for Troops Returning from Iraq and Afghanistan and Their Families.”
