Free Mental Health Resources

Download our free tools, guides, and resources to help you develop coping skills and stress management.

Behavioral Health Helpline

Contact the Behavioral Health Helpline

call or text 1-833-773-2445

The Behavioral Health Helpline connects individuals and families to the full range of treatment services for mental health and substance use offered in Massachusetts, including outpatient, urgent, and immediate crisis care. The Helpline is free and available to all Massachusetts residents, even if you do not have insurance.

The Helpline is available in more than 200 languages and is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. When you reach out to the Helpline, you’ll speak with a Resource & Referral Specialist. The Resource & Referral Specialist can provide:

information about behavioral health services
resources for behavioral health and other needs
clinical triage and assessment
connection to emergent, urgent, and routine mental health and substance use treatment
warm handoff to your local Community Behavioral Health Centers

After your initial contact with the Helpline, a Resource & Referral Specialist will follow up to ensure you were able to connect with services.

Community Behavioral Health Centers

You can contact the Behavioral Health Helpline to be connected with your local CBHC, or reach out to a CBHC directly.

call or text 1-833-773-2445 chat online at www.masshelpline.com

Community Behavioral Health Centers (CBHCs) are regional centers that offer emergent, urgent, and routine treatment for mental health and substance use conditions. This includes:

in-person and via telehealth, with evening and weekend availability
clinical and peer support
individual, family, and group therapy
medication prescribing services and management
care coordination, treatment planning, and and referrals to other services
same day evaluation and access to treatment, with timely follow-up appointments
behavioral health urgent care
youth and adult mobile crisis intervention and community crisis stabilization

William James Interface

9am to 5pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and 8am to 6pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays (excluding holidays), at 888-244-6843 (toll free).

The William James INTERFACE Referral Service aims to help break down the “silos” that exist between various agencies, mental health providers, and systems that can often hinder access to mental health and wellness services for individuals. Through the Helpline that operates from 9 AM- 5 PM on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and 8 AM- 6 PM on Tuesday and Thursday, callers from subscribing communities will work with a Resource and Referral Counselor who will help them navigate the challenges of finding mental health services. Each caller from a subscribing community will be assigned a lead counselor who will provide matches to services, as well as provide information and resources about mental health and wellness.

Therapy Matcher

Call us at 800-242-9794 or email us at info@therapymatcher.org,

Therapy Matcher provides free, personalized, and confidential referrals to licensed social workers across Massachusetts.

Call us at 800-242-9794 or email us at info@therapymatcher.org, leave a message with your name and phone number, and a social worker will call you back to help you define your counseling needs, answer questions about counseling, and recommend several potential therapists.

We ask about your preferences, including the issues you want to talk about, location, gender of clinician, and insurance or fee requirements.
We suggest licensed clinical social workers who best match your needs and therapeutic goals. We tell you about their training and experience.
We will continue to work with you until you find the right therapist.

Psychology Today

9am to 5pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and 8am to 6pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays (excluding holidays), at 888-244-6843 (toll free).

Psychology Today's Therapy Directory lists clinical professionals, psychiatrists and treatment centers who provide mental health services in the US and internationally. Psychology Today is a large online database of mental health providers, groups, and treatment programs. You can filter your search by location, insurance, issue, provider gender, sexuality, age, language spoken, faith, treatment orientation, and more.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)

SAMHSA's National Helpline
800-662-HELP (4357)
TTY: 800-487-4889

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is the agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that leads public health efforts to advance the behavioral health of the nation.

Samaritans

9am to 5pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and 8am to 6pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays (excluding holidays), at 888-244-6843 (toll free).

If you’re looking to get help, you’ve come to the right place. Samaritans is here for you if you are feeling suicidal, lost a loved one to suicide, want to help someone who is struggling, or want to learn more about suicide prevention or suicide loss.

Samaritans works to prevent suicide and support those who have lost someone to suicide. Each year, 300+ volunteers answer more than 80,000 calls, texts, and chats on our Helpline.

If you need to talk to someone about how you’re feeling, grieve the loss of a loved one to suicide, or learn how to help others in crisis, you can find support with us.

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline

Call or text 988; Llame al 988 (para ayuda en español)Use Lifeline Chat on the web (English only)

The Lifeline provides 24-hour, confidential support to anyone in suicidal crisis or emotional distress. Call or text 988 to connect with a trained crisis counselor.

Veterans Crisis Line

Use Veterans Crisis Chat on the web

The Veterans Crisis Line is a free, confidential resource that connects veterans 24 hours a day, 7 days a week with a trained responder. The service is available to all veterans and those who support them, even if they are not registered with the VA or enrolled in VA healthcare.

Disaster Distress Helpline

Call or text 1-800-985-5990

The disaster distress helpline provides immediate crisis counseling for people who are experiencing emotional distress related to any natural or human-caused disaster. The helpline is free, multilingual, confidential, and available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

If you are worried about a friend’s social media updates, you can contact safety teams at the social media company. They will reach out to connect the person with the help they need.

View the 5 action steps for helping someone in emotional pain infographic to see how you can help those in distress.

The Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA)

Visit online https://adaa.org

ADAA is an international nonprofit organization dedicated to the prevention, treatment, and cure of anxiety, depression, OCD, PTSD, and co-occurring disorders through the alignment of science, treatment, and education.

Federal Resources

Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA): HRSA works to improve access to health care. The HRSA website has information on finding affordable healthcare, including health centers that offer care on a sliding fee scale.
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS): CMS has information on its website about benefits and eligibility for mental health programs and how to enroll.
The National Library of Medicine (NLM) MedlinePlus: NLM’s website has directories and lists of organizations that can help in identifying a health practitioner.

Find Insurance Provider

Most mental health services, including medication and therapy, are provided through health insurance. We have compiled a list of the top US-based insurance companies.

What are healthy coping skills?

Coping skills are the tools and techniques we use to stay calm and centered in difficult or stressful situations. They're especially useful when we don't have the power to immediately change a situation.

Coping skills vary from person to person, and what works for one person might not work for another.

When you're feeling stressed, try one of these activities: meditation or another relaxation technique, physical activity like walking or playing a sport, doing something creative like writing or drawing, practicing spirituality, spending time with family members or pets--or just eating a healthy meal.