FamilyWorks, the university-based, brief therapy center for the Marriage and Family Therapy graduate program. FamilyWorks trains graduate students in relational thinking (sometimes called systems thinking), and provides brief therapy to families, couples, and individuals who come from all over south Georgia and north Florida, most commonly Valdosta, the VSU campus, Moody Airforce Base, and surrounding communities.
Services Offered
Any individual person, married or unmarried couples, children, elderly, couples who are or are not living together, LGBT persons, families of all varieties, regardless of legal status, roommates--all are welcome at FamilyWorks. Family therapy, sometimes called systems therapy or relational therapy, is a particular way of thinking that helps people make the changes that they want to make. Even though the word, "family" suggests that family therapists work only with whole families, this is not the case. Family therapists work with individuals, couples, groups, and families. Family therapy has been found to be helpful to people with many different kinds of problems. These might include: anger management anxiety individual depression divorce and separation sexual problems parenting problems difficulty with communication relationship problems domestic violence grief and loss pre-marital concerns child behavior problems
We offer our services to all people who seek them, regardless of age, gender, race, political or religious affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, education, economic status, disability, or ethnic background. FamilyWorks therapists do not dispense medication; however, talk over your medication concerns with him or her, and, if you need a referral to a psychiatrist, we are happy to help.
Fees and Payment
FamilyWorks is a not-for-profit clinic. Our mission is two-pronged: to provide low-cost services that are available to everyone, regardless of ability to pay and to train advanced level graduate students in the art and science of brief therapy. As a result, we charge for each session according to a sliding scale that is based on family size and income, so fees can begin at $0.
There is no charge to VSU students, and for everyone else, our bottom line is that we never turn anyone away because of an inability to pay.
Services Offered To: Adults Couples Teens Children
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.
