UCSF Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Wavefront CBT Program
UCSF Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Wavefront CBT Program
Depression is one of the most common mental health problems affecting adolescents. In addition to feeling sad, irritable, and depressed for weeks or months at a time, symptoms can also include feeling worthless and hopeless, having frequent thoughts about death or more serious thoughts about harming or killing oneself. Depression can involve the loss of enjoyment or interest in activities, changes in eating and sleeping habits, and trouble concentrating. Depression typically leads to significant interference with daily aspects of life, such as declining performance in school, isolation from friends, and increasing withdrawal, and conflict with family members.
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Services Offered
Individual services - Teens and young adults seeking treatment for depression or anxiety may be treated by one of our core staff members in an individual therapy setting. Patients will be thoroughly evaluated at the outset of treatment to ensure the appropriateness of CBT, and will also be evaluated periodically throughout treatment to systematically assess progress. Individual CBT typically consists of psychoeducation about diagnoses and treatment, collaborative goal setting, and both cognitive and behavioral strategies, to address symptoms and prevent future relapse. Depending on the age and presentation of the patient, parental involvement is often a key component of treatment. Patients are also expected to do homework as part of their treatment, to help generalize skills and strategies learned in session to their real lives.
Services Offered To: Adults Teens Children
Payment: Sliding Scale
Online Counseling: Yes
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Qualifying for assistance from California's program usually depends on the severity of your condition and financial circumstance. Read our full guide to California's program.
A community counseling agency is a group therapy practice that offers affordable mental health services. Most are independent non-profit agencies, state agencies, or publicly-funded agencies. A few may restrict who is eligible for services, so it is a good idea to check when you call.
Community counseling agencies are generally more affordable than other therapy providers, but how much more affordable they are will depend on whether you qualify for a discount or sliding scale fee (or if they accept your insurance). Many, but not all, have a policy that they won't turn away anyone due to inability to pay. You should ask about their fees when you first call.
Expect to talk to kind people who want to help you find the care you need. Most community agencies strive to connect you with a live person within 24 hours, if not immediately. If you're asked to hold or leave a message, don't give up; just leave a message and wait. You should hear back pretty quickly.
Most agencies try to set up an initial assessment appointment within a week (some do within 24 hours), though the waitlist to start therapy is usually longer—about a few weeks on average. If you're not eligible or if the agency is not right for you, it's usually still worth it to call or drop in, because staff are knowledgeable about local options and can often refer you to one.