Mental Health Help Locations

Students often find themselves struggling with mental health and unsure of where to turn for help, but they can find many accessible resources right in Des Moines.

Stepping Stone Family Services is located in West Des Moines and provides office-based therapy for children and adults, as well as other services. One of these services is Iintegrated Hhealth Hhome, where they provide care coordination by having someone reach out and contact the family at least once a month and then provide them with resources and services if they need them. 

Aaron Herman, the owner of Stepping Stone Family Services, stated, “Our counselors go into the home and work with the client individually on communication skills, anger management skills, coping skills, that kind of thing… One thing I’ve been really excited to see in [teenagers] is that the stigma of mental health has been lifted a bit. I feel like people are more accepting to receiving services and therapy and are open to talking to their friends about it.”

Students can reach out for services from Stepping Stone by calling their main office (515-276-6338), or visiting their website. 

Another local mental health resource is Clive Behavioral Health Hospital (visit their website here). Clive Behavioral Health provides both inpatient and outpatient services, but the core of its business is inpatient. They treat children and adolescents ages 4-17 and adults 18+. Walk-ins are welcome and will receive a completely free level-of-care assessment to find out where they are on the scale of crisis. From there, they may qualify for inpatient services or outpatient services. 

Their outpatient services offer programs that last two to three weeks each. They offer two programs for adults and two for adolescents (13-17). One of these services is called a partial hospitalization program which is four hours a day, five days a week for two to three weeks. It is a group therapy setting for people who either do not quite qualify for inpatient or they have been inpatient and they are ready to step down to a lower level of care. They will work in a group therapy setting where they can be around people the same age and who are probably going through many of the same things. Their other program is a substance abuse program held in the evenings, which is for chemical, alcohol, or other substance addiction. This is also a group therapy-based program. 

Their inpatient services are offered if someone qualifies after the level of care assessment is conducted. Clive Behavioral is a short-term care facility, and the average length of stay is five to seven days. They are a stand-alone hospital, which means they are not able to care for people with medical needs (although other hospitals will assist people who require both medical and mental services). After the level of care assessment, somebody may qualify for inpatient, and if not then they would be directed to outpatient, and if that is still more than they need, they would be sent home with a safety plan, which is provided at no cost. The safety plan includes information about services in Des Moines, medication providers, and therapists. Clive Behavioral is not able to work with people who have intellectual disabilities (but people with intellectual disabilities can seek inpatient services at ChildServe).

Jason Bridie, director of business development at Clive Behavioral Health stated, “We are basically an emergency room for behavioral health… if you or someone can get you here, it is a safe space to at least settle down and start to figure things out.”

“Even coming to our front door just to ask for help, we can at least help you realize that this isn’t something you’re going through by yourself… We have professionals here who are trained to identify what it is you’re dealing with, how to help you work through it and realize that there is some light at the end of the tunnel. There is a way to have a good quality life that means something to you and that you mean something to someone. There is a way to get past this.”

The Young Women’s Resource Center (YWRC) is located in Des Moines and works to empower and support girls and young women ages 10-24 (the YWRC defines girls and young women as “any persons who have been socialized and/or identify as female. Trans, genderfluid, and nonbinary friends are welcome”). The YWRC provides many services, such as after-school groups for grades 5-12, one-on-one or group counseling sessions, summer empowerment programs, programs specifically designed to support young moms and more. All of these programs are completely voluntary, free and confidential. Students can reach out for services by visiting their website here. 

If somebody needs immediate crisis help, the suicide hotline is 988 which includes extensions for Spanish-speaking people and LGBTQ+ people. For emergencies, call 911. There is also a center called Crisis Stabilization. If a student is thinking of suicide or self-harm, but the hospitals are full or they do not have an active suicide plan, Crisis Stabilization is another option because it is a safe environment with staff there 24/7. There is therapy support needed during a crisis, but it is not a hospital. 

There is also a therapy program at Northwest. There are several options for students depending on their needs. The Student Assistance Program is for students who want short-term therapy at no cost. Two other therapists are here on Mondays and Tuesdays to provide more traditional, long-term therapy for students. 

Katherine Nong, the social worker at Northwest, explained, “Short-term EFR, she’s here on Thursday mornings and that’s not billed through insurance, so there’s no cost to the student or parents at all. We just need parental consent… And then the therapists that are here on Mondays and Tuesdays, we do bill insurance. But we don’t want cost to be a barrier for any student or family so if a student doesn’t have insurance or is underinsured, or the parents are worried about the copay, we have a partnership with Heart of Iowa and they will cover the cost for the student while they’re in school. We never want that to be a barrier for anyone to address concerns they have.”

To schedule an appointment or learn more about the program, talk with either a counselor or Ms. Nong and they will be happy to answer any questions. 

No matter where students decide to go, they should know that there is always help available. Mental facilities exist purely to help people get support and feel less alone. There is always hope.

Students often find themselves struggling with mental health and unsure of where to turn for help, but they can find many accessible resources right in Des Moines.

Stepping Stone Family Services is located in West Des Moines and provides office-based therapy for children and adults, as well as other services. One of these services is Iintegrated Hhealth Hhome, where they provide care coordination by having someone reach out and contact the family at least once a month and then provide them with resources and services if they need them. 

Aaron Herman, the owner of Stepping Stone Family Services, stated, “Our counselors go into the home and work with the client individually on communication skills, anger management skills, coping skills, that kind of thing… One thing I’ve been really excited to see in [teenagers] is that the stigma of mental health has been lifted a bit. I feel like people are more accepting to receiving services and therapy and are open to talking to their friends about it.”

Students can reach out for services from Stepping Stone by calling their main office (515-276-6338), or visiting their website. 

Another local mental health resource is Clive Behavioral Health Hospital (visit their website here). Clive Behavioral Health provides both inpatient and outpatient services, but the core of its business is inpatient. They treat children and adolescents ages 4-17 and adults 18+. Walk-ins are welcome and will receive a completely free level-of-care assessment to find out where they are on the scale of crisis. From there, they may qualify for inpatient services or outpatient services. 

Their outpatient services offer programs that last two to three weeks each. They offer two programs for adults and two for adolescents (13-17). One of these services is called a partial hospitalization program which is four hours a day, five days a week for two to three weeks. It is a group therapy setting for people who either do not quite qualify for inpatient or they have been inpatient and they are ready to step down to a lower level of care. They will work in a group therapy setting where they can be around people the same age and who are probably going through many of the same things. Their other program is a substance abuse program held in the evenings, which is for chemical, alcohol, or other substance addiction. This is also a group therapy-based program. 

Their inpatient services are offered if someone qualifies after the level of care assessment is conducted. Clive Behavioral is a short-term care facility, and the average length of stay is five to seven days. They are a stand-alone hospital, which means they are not able to care for people with medical needs (although other hospitals will assist people who require both medical and mental services). After the level of care assessment, somebody may qualify for inpatient, and if not then they would be directed to outpatient, and if that is still more than they need, they would be sent home with a safety plan, which is provided at no cost. The safety plan includes information about services in Des Moines, medication providers, and therapists. Clive Behavioral is not able to work with people who have intellectual disabilities (but people with intellectual disabilities can seek inpatient services at ChildServe).

Jason Bridie, director of business development at Clive Behavioral Health stated, “We are basically an emergency room for behavioral health… if you or someone can get you here, it is a safe space to at least settle down and start to figure things out.”

“Even coming to our front door just to ask for help, we can at least help you realize that this isn’t something you’re going through by yourself… We have professionals here who are trained to identify what it is you’re dealing with, how to help you work through it and realize that there is some light at the end of the tunnel. There is a way to have a good quality life that means something to you and that you mean something to someone. There is a way to get past this.”

The Young Women’s Resource Center (YWRC) is located in Des Moines and works to empower and support girls and young women ages 10-24 (the YWRC defines girls and young women as “any persons who have been socialized and/or identify as female. Trans, genderfluid, and nonbinary friends are welcome”). The YWRC provides many services, such as after-school groups for grades 5-12, one-on-one or group counseling sessions, summer empowerment programs, programs specifically designed to support young moms and more. All of these programs are completely voluntary, free and confidential. Students can reach out for services by visiting their website here. 

If somebody needs immediate crisis help, the suicide hotline is 988 which includes extensions for Spanish-speaking people and LGBTQ+ people. For emergencies, call 911. There is also a center called Crisis Stabilization. If a student is thinking of suicide or self-harm, but the hospitals are full or they do not have an active suicide plan, Crisis Stabilization is another option because it is a safe environment with staff there 24/7. There is therapy support needed during a crisis, but it is not a hospital. 

There is also a therapy program at Northwest. There are several options for students depending on their needs. The Student Assistance Program is for students who want short-term therapy at no cost. Two other therapists are here on Mondays and Tuesdays to provide more traditional, long-term therapy for students. 

Katherine Nong, the social worker at Northwest, explained, “Short-term EFR, she’s here on Thursday mornings and that’s not billed through insurance, so there’s no cost to the student or parents at all. We just need parental consent… And then the therapists that are here on Mondays and Tuesdays, we do bill insurance. But we don’t want cost to be a barrier for any student or family so if a student doesn’t have insurance or is underinsured, or the parents are worried about the copay, we have a partnership with Heart of Iowa and they will cover the cost for the student while they’re in school. We never want that to be a barrier for anyone to address concerns they have.”

To schedule an appointment or learn more about the program, talk with either a counselor or Ms. Nong and they will be happy to answer any questions. 

No matter where students decide to go, they should know that there is always help available. Mental facilities exist purely to help people get support and feel less alone. There is always hope. More resources are available below: