Behavioral Health, under the Health & Human Services department of Carver County, provides a range of services and support for individuals who are experiencing mental illness, chemical dependency, emotional/behavior disorders or difficulty adjusting to life changes, and it provides services for their family members.
Outpatient Treatment - People seek therapy for many reasons, including feelings of sadness and hopelessness, debilitating stress and anxiety, or adjustment to life changes. Parents use therapy to gain assistance with parenting strategies or to help a child to overcome obstacles. Others experience a diagnosable mental illness. An individual with mental illness needs treatment and help in coping with everyday problems. Fortunately, effective treatments are available. Our team of professionals provide various methods of treatment including individual, group, family therapy, couples therapy, and medications when appropriate. Services include the following: Psycho-education and Therapeutic Groups
Anger Management Group: This group teaches people to recognize the signs and levels of anger, and how to de-escalate and cope with various thoughts and impulses.
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy: Otherwise known as DBT, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy is an educational and therapeutic intervention to help people who have difficulty coping with emotions. Participants make a commitment to attend regular groups for a specified amount of time to learn new skills and ways of thinking. Treatment includes individual DBT therapy, group skills training, skills coaching and crisis management.
Behavioral Parent Training: This training is for families who have a child that experiences challenges in life. This psychoeducational class involves education, support, and goal setting for parents. Participants pick a parenting goal each week, and report progress back to the group.
Cognitive Behavioral Group Therapy for Depression: Participants learn to cope with depression by learning new ways to think and cope.
Treatment for Domestic Violence: This group is a structured therapy group to help those that have reacted in an unsafe or unkind way toward others. Participants work through steps and do homework to learn new skills.
Women's Group:This group is for women to get support with life's problems and stresses. This service is an ongoing support group.
Psychotherapy - Psychotherapy is a process in which a person works with a mental health professional to learn new ways to cope with life's problems. Sometimes this involves gaining greater self-understanding, getting needed support, relieving distress, improving self-esteem, or changing ineffective behaviors. First Street Center has a staff of qualified psychotherapists and psychologists who work with children, adolescents, adults, and seniors.
Anicca Program - An adolescent day treatment program for students in grades 7-12. This intensive outpatient service is provided in a safe, therapeutic and structured environment service for those needing mental health care. Services are provided year round and include academic instruction from qualified licensed teachers.
Fees and Payment
If you don't have insurance and not much money, we offer services on a sliding fee scale for Carver County residents.
Services Offered To: Adults Teens Children
Special Groups: Bilingual
Payment: Sliding Scale Medicare Medicaid
Were You Able To Make an Appointment?
One quick last question. Who was seeking counseling today?
Do you know the reason they are not accepting clients?
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.
