Mental Health Resources
Below is a list of resources available to students and families in San Diego County.
Point Loma Cluster parents explored the concept of Social Emotional Well Being the role the Pandemic (and the related changes) may have upon us and our children. We learned healthy ways to support your own social emotional health and well-being. Experts from the SDUSD Mental Health Resource Center presented strategies for parents and share connections to the work taking place in our schools.
Parents Anonymous® Inc.
Parent & Youth Helpline and Online Parents Anonymous® Support Groups provides free trauma-informed, evidence-based emotional support to parents, children, and youth in any language via calls, text, live chat, and email.
The National Alliance on Mental Illness in San Diego
(NAMI San Diego) is the community’s voice on mental illness.
A continuum of care for children and youth from infancy to age 25
General Mental Health Resource Guides
- Online resource guide created by the County of San Diego Health and Human Services agency to offer easy access to mental health and suicide prevention resources.
- Additional resources are available under each link, however, the most widely used links have been included below for quick reference.
- Link to local organizations to access support groups and trainings for parents and families
- Live local hotlines or supports for mental health, domestic violence and suicide prevention
- Link to local resources for referrals
San Diego Access and Crisis Line
The San Diego Access and Crisis Line serves as a suicide prevention/intervention hotline. It provides mental health crisis intervention and information and referral to mental health services in San Diego County, including referrals to mental health care professionals who accept Medi-Cal and those who do not have health insurance. It also provides information and referral to County Drug and Alcohol treatment and recovery services for adults, adolescents and pregnant and parenting women who are receiving Medi-Cal or who do not have health insurance. Calls are FREE and answered by trained professionals. Service is available in multiple languages.
- Phone: (888) 724-7240
- Hours of Operation: 24 hours a day/ 7 days a week.
Rady's Behavioral Health Urgent Care
The Behavioral Health Urgent Care serves children, teens and their families struggling with urgent emotional and/or behavioral concerns in the Mid City Region including suicidal thoughts, psychotic thinking, physical aggression, co-occurring problem with substance use/abuse, depression, anxiety and acute stress reduction. Located at 4305 University Avenue, Suite 150 San Diego, CA 92105.
- Phone: (858) 966-5484
- Hours of Operation Walk-in clinic: 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday
Referrals to Community Based Providers
Mental Health Support for Undocumented Students and Families
- La Maestra Clinic
- Serves Undocumented Students/Families
- This organization provides quality health care to the ethnically diverse communities in San Diego.
- Operation Samahan
- This is a community health center that provides health and mental health services to low-income Filipinos/Asians and other low-income families and individuals in the County of San Diego, with locations in National City and Mira Mesa.
Mental Health Support for Low Income Students and Families
- Family Health Centers
- City Heights Family Health Center
- Diamond Neighborhoods Family Health Center
- Elm St. Family Health Center
- Family Health Clinic at City College
- Family Health - Youth Counseling Center
- Healthy Development Services - Central
- Downtown Family HealthCenter at Connections
- The above link will take you to ‘Find a Clinic’
- Click on the following clinics listed on the link - the identified clinics below provide Mental Health Services (phone # provided)
Community Based Providers (Fee for Service)
- Mental health services for children & youth and parent workshops
- Fee for Service provider - do not take insurance
- If school personnel refer - family may be eligible for a scholarship & receive a reduced rate
- Open tab titled For Professionals & complete consent & send to program
- Or provide information & phone # directly to parent
- Per session rate may be as low as $6 to $12 depending on income/family size
- Refer by
- Mental health services
- Fee for Service provider - do not take insurance
- Facts for Families- American Academy of Pediatrics, a resource for parents to better understand childhood diagnosis, behaviors and development
- Advice for Parents - KidsHealth, a guide for parents of children age 0 - 10 years old on topics such as development, emotions and behaviors and school and family life
- The Trevor Project is a national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to LGBTQ youth and young adults, ages 13–24, over the phone, online and via text.
- TrevorLifeline: A crisis intervention and suicide prevention phone service available
- TrevorText: Text with a trained counselor.
- TrevorChat: Confidential chat service with a trained volunteer counselor
- How Access Trevor Project to Get Help Now
- What is SOGIE? (Sex, Gender Identity, Gender Expression, and Sexual Orientation)
County of San Diego Quick Guide to Services
- Quick reference guide to all County of San Diego services, including referrals and support groups for Medi-Cal beneficiaries and the underinsured. Plan, accessing important resources, getting support at times of greatest risk, and accessing the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 24/7. Need to download app in App Store
- Teen Talk is a free iPhone app where teens can get support for whatever they may be dealing with from a trained teen. It is a safe, non-judgmental space where you can anonymously post your issue at any time and get support from a trained teen from 6 to 10 PM. Call 310-855-4673 or text "TEEN" to 839863. Download app from weblink
- The Virtual Hope Box (VHB) is a smartphone application designed for use by patients and their behavioral health providers as an accessory to treatment. The VHB contains simple tools to help patients with coping, relaxation, distraction, and positive thinking. Patients and providers can work together to personalize the VHB content on the patient's own smartphone according to the patient's specific needs. Need to download app from App Store