The Family Center is a private, nonprofit, community service organization dedicated to helping individuals and families enhance their own skills, recognize their potential, and reach their own goals.
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Services Offered
INDIVIDUAL, COUPLE AND FAMILY COUNSELING
The counselors and counseling interns employed by Family Counseling of Columbus are skilled at addressing concerns that most of us face at some point in our lives, on a variety of levels. Such concerns may be addressed through: Individual Counseling to address issues such as mood disorders like depression, or anxiety and stress, difficulty coping, or just needing an objective, caring third party to listen as we sort through situational problems, explore life goals, manage change and transition, or pursue personal growth. Talking one-on-one with a trained professional in a confidential setting can be an extremely powerful and effective strategy to improve your life.
Couples Counseling to address concerns specifically related to relationships. Couples counseling can address the variety of topics that couples face, whether the couple is married, engaged, or even just starting to date. Pre-marital counseling is recommended for any couple who wants to ensure that their relationship has what it takes to go the distance before saying "I do".
Even couples in stable relationships sometimes struggle from time to time to improve communication and problem solving skills, learn how to disagree in healthy, constructive ways, learn to negotiate differences, or share greater intimacy. Couples counseling can also be beneficial in helping rocky relationships get back on track - whether the task is to heal from infidelity or lack of trust, prevent divorce, or regain a sense of closeness, talking with a trained professional can make all the difference.
In the event that a couple has decided to end the marriage, divorce counseling can be beneficial in helping a couple to separate or divorce in the healthiest and least destructive way possible - especially important if there are children involved.
Family Counseling to deal with matters that affect more than just an individual in the family or just the couple. Whether you need to improve parent-child relationships, address behavioral problems in the children, learn to cope with a family member's physical or mental illness, or just get a tune up so that all members of your family can feel happier and better supported, talking with a family therapist can be an invaluable tool. Family therapy is also often used in conjunction with individual and / or couples work.
CHILD AND ADOLESCENT COUNSELING
Children and adolescents are not just small adults…and counseling with children and adolescents should be done in a way that recognizes this. At Family Counseling of Columbus, our counselors and counseling interns appreciate that the needs, styles, and developmental tasks of children and adolescents require a special approach to counseling with them. Before any counseling can be provided to a minor, the parent or guardian must first give their consent for them to receive services.
Counseling services for children (ages 4 - 10) We recognize that for small children, PLAY is their work and the way that they express themselves and their feelings, explore solutions, and test new skills and abilities. Play therapy techniques, theories, and approaches are incorporated into our work with our littlest clients, ensuring that the counseling office and the counseling process are welcoming, friendly, safe, and a fun place to be.
Counseling services for pre-teens and adolescents (ages 11 - 17) Adolescents bring different needs, expectations, strengths, and challenges to counseling. Family Counseling of Columbus clinicians appreciate the unique variables that come into play when working with "tweens" and teens. Some of these unique variables that have an impact on how we work with adolescents include: Developmental issues and privacy - adolescents have to deal with the process of separating themselves from their family identity and forging their own individual selves. By nature, and as a part of the normal maturation process, they are more closed and less communicative than many parents would like. For this reason, the concept of privacy and confidentiality are of critical importance for these soon-to be-adults.
Negotiating power and control - Your adolescent's counselor will balance your child's need to set the pace and the goals for counseling, and will keep you informed about the progress that they are making.
Fees and Payment
The regular fee for counseling is $75.00 per counseling hour (50 minutes). We do accept some forms of insurance, and we will be happy to work with you to determine if we are able to file on any health insurance you may have.
Our counseling services can be provided on a sliding fee scale, based on household income and the number of persons living in your household. At the time you request an appointment, ask for more information about the agency's sliding fee scale.
Currently, selected FCC counselors are able to accept the following insurance benefits: Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia Aetna TriCare
Services Offered To: Adults Couples Teens Children
Special Groups: LGBTQ
Payment: Sliding Scale
If You Call, Please Let Us Know How it Went:
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Qualifying for assistance from Georgia's program usually depends on the severity of your condition and financial circumstance. Read our full guide to Georgia'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.