Mental Health
Please see the resources listed below to support yourself and others. You can schedule an appointment or reach out to us for help navigating the many resources available. For urgent needs, please call or text 988 to connect with the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
The Student and Employee Distress Guide provides information to help you support individuals who may be experiencing distress and lists resources available for Virginia Tech community members. We encourage you to download and print the Distress Guide to keep somewhere easily accessible and refer to when needed.
University-Provided Resources
Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
- Employee Assistance Programs (EAP) provide help to Virginia Tech employees and members of their family in many areas, including stress-related problems, emotional difficulties, alcohol or drug problems, family and relationship troubles, parenting concerns, conflicts at work or home, financial and legal issues, and other personal concerns.
- Anthem: 1-855-223-9277
- Aetna: 1-888-238-6232
- Kaiser Permanente: 1-866-517-7042
- Sentara: 1-800-899-8174
- More information on EAP.
TimelyCare (Virtual support)
- Available to all faculty, staff, non-student wage employees, TimelyCare offers online counseling services, health coaching, self-care resources, and a talk now feature to speak with some whenever you need.
- Certain employee classifications may not have access to the platform. Please reach out to Hokie Wellness at 540-231-8878 or hokiewellness@vt.edu with questions about registration or access.
Virginia Tech CARES Program
- The CARES (Campus, Advocacy, Resources, and Education for Survivors) Program offers advocacy and support services to students, faculty, and staff who have been impacted by experiences such as sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking/harassment and many other forms of violence.
- 540-231-7806 (business hours)
- 540-639-1123 (24/7 – Women’s Resources Center of NRV)
- More information on CARES.
Employee Support Groups
- The Psychological Services Center (PSC) has partnered with Hokie Wellness to host group sessions led and facilitated by its graduate psychology students in the Clinical Science Ph.D. program.
- There will be two separate groups offered on a biweekly basis. All sessions will meet in-person at the PSC, located at 3110 Prices Fork Rd. Blacksburg, VA 24060.
- Virginia Tech faculty, staff, and non-student wage employees may attend any and all sessions as desired at no cost. These groups are also open to non-VT community members.
- As these sessions will primarily support employees, Virginia Tech students are encouraged to access clinical services, such as support groups, through Cook Counseling Center instead.
- Location: Meets biweekly on Wednesdays from 5:30-7 p.m. at PSC.
- Dates: May 27, June 10, June 24, July 8, July 22, Aug. 5, Aug. 19
- No registration required.
- Summary: Grief is a unique and individual journey that can be challenging to navigate. This group is open to all who have experienced grief and loss in their lives. Grief captures a wide range of experiences, and all are welcome to attend. We will focus on sharing stories, answering questions, and processing experiences in a supportive manner. Throughout the group, psychoeducation will be provided when appropriate and helpful; however, most biweekly meetings will be participant-driven, with the clinician in a supportive role to keep conversations balanced and moving.
- Facilitator: TJ Shaw is a rising fifth year student in the clinical science program at Virginia Tech. Clinically, he has four years of experience in a range of settings performing assessments and therapy with both adults and children. Currently, he works at the Salem Veterans Affairs Medical Center performing therapy and assessments with veterans experiencing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). He has also worked in outpatient settings treating PTSD and other-trauma-related distress using a variety of cognitive-behavior-based approaches. He has run this group for one year and looks forward to meeting new members.
- Location: Meets biweekly on Mondays from 5-6:30 p.m. at PSC.
- Dates: June 8, June 22, July 6, July 20, Aug. 3.
- Registration optional. Although not required, we encourage employees to fill out this registration form so PSC clinicians will know how many attendees to expect at each session.
- Summary: This support group is open to individuals interested in discussions about neurodiversity, whether for yourself or for others you work or live with. Neurodivergence is a broad term that can include mental health diagnoses such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and other severe mental illnesses including, but not limited to, depression, anxiety, panic disorder, psychotic-spectrum disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and borderline personality disorder (BPD). Weekly topics will be decided by group needs and could include things such as advocating for oneself in the workplace, seeking support services, learning how to work with neurodivergent individuals, and being there for yourself or others. The group will include psychoeducation about neurodiversity/neurodivergence, specific skills to apply, and the opportunity to connect with others experiencing similar or shared concerns.
- Facilitator: Victoria Izaac is a rising fifth year student in the clinical science program in the Department of Psychology at VT. She has a range of experiences including working with college students, children/adolescents, families, and adults in both a group and individual context. She mostly works with neurodiverse populations. Currently, she works at Carilion Children's, but she is also a clinician at the Psychological Services Center and the Virgina Tech Autism Clinic. In past, she was a clinician for Cook Counseling Center. She has run this group for one year and looks forward to seeing new and familiar faces.
New River Valley-Specific Resources
- New River Valley Community Services' crisis hotline operates 4 p.m.–8 a.m. Monday through Friday and 24 hours on the weekends. NRVCS Case Managers answer the phones during business hours.
- For crisis and emergency situations: 988 or 540-961-8400
- All other calls: 540-961-8300
- Family Therapy Center at Virginia Tech (FTC) provides high quality mental health services to individuals, couples, and families with a sliding fee scale. The FTC is affiliated with the Marriage and Family Therapy doctoral program within the Virginia Tech Department of Human Development and Family Science.
- 540-231-7201
- Psychological Services Center at Virginia Tech (PSC) is a community-based behavioral and mental health clinic providing sliding fee scales for individual, couple, family, and group therapies as well as assessment services for adults, adolescents, and children. The PSC is affiliated with the Clinical Science doctoral program within the Virginia Tech Department of Psychology.
- 540-231-6914
- Community Health Center of the New River Valley-Behavioral Health Program provides affordable and high quality medical, dental, behavioral, and preventative health services to people of all ages and circumstances, regardless of their ability to pay or insurance status.
- Montgomery Center: 540-381-0820
- Giles Center: 540-921-3502
- Radford/Pulaski Center: 540-585-1310
- The Women’s Resource Center of the New River Valley provides emergency help for survivors of domestic violence. Crisis-trained staff and volunteers can immediately provide emotional support and information through 24/7 emergency hotline services. Callers to the hotline can expect highly trained, experienced advocates to offer compassionate support, crisis intervention information, and referral services.
- For immediate assistance, call: 540-639-1123
- All other calls: 540-639-9592
State and National Resources
- National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline: The Lifeline provides 24/7, free, and confidential support for people in distress as well as prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones.
- Call or text: 988
- Community Services Boards (CSBs) in Virginia, are the points of entry for publicly funded mental health, substance use disorder, and developmental services for intellectual disabilities and/or developmental disabilities. Availability of 24/7 crisis support may vary by location.
- Psychology Today is a great resource to find mental health professionals in your area. You can sort by insurance, types of therapy, provider characteristics, language, price and more.
- Veterans seeking access to 24/7, confidential crisis support can dial 988 then press 1 to be connected to the Veterans Crisis Line. You don't have to be enrolled in VA benefits or health care to connect.
- Virginia Law Enforcement Assistance Program (VALEAP) implements proven methods of peer support and mental health services to provide psychological and emotional healing for individuals and groups.
Workshops and Trainings
- Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) takes the fear and hesitation out of starting conversations about mental health and substance-use by improving understanding and providing an action plan that teaches people to safely and responsibly identify and address issues as they arise. An all-day training, currently paid for by the university. Receive a 3-year certification.
- Self-care is an ongoing and multi-dimensional practice. Visit the Self-care Series in PageUp to find a suite of learning activities that provide tips for effective and sustainable self-care. Options are available for live, synchronous workshops and pre-recorded content accessible on-demand through Virginia Tech single sign-on (SSO).
- The Mental Health Resources Information Session will cover a range of options available to VT employees for accessing mental health and behavioral health care, including the Employee Assistance Program, TimelyCare, and other general support services.
For additional workshops on mental health such as sleep, mindfulness, and more, check out the calendar of events to the right or go to the PageUp Learning Library and under “level” select “mental and emotional”.