Submitted by SameProfession254 t3_10p7m0w in Maine
I've been trying to start in person therapy for months now. I have probably called almost every phone number I could find for therapists in southern Maine and each time they told me no new patients. I'm not interested in doing it online. Has anyone else had this problem and could I get some leads?
My doctor recommended this website to me actually. I called tons of people on that list and none were taking new patients even if it said they were on the page. It's poorly updated
Ah damn, I found my therapist through it and so did my wife. Was hoping to give you the same luck.
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Mods don't do any thing, this is reddit if you forgot /s
Also how I found my therapist. Ended up settling and meeting online and I don’t regret it.
+1 for being willing to at least try online. It may not end up being your cup of tea but it's definitely something to try, especially when there are some potential service shortages.
This, but don't be surprised if the listings aren't fully up-to-date. I had two or three who said they were accepting patients but then weren't when I reached out. But keep trying and you should find one, OP.
This is how I found my therapist.
Yeah, you can sort by insurance, online/in person; it's great. It's much easier to find a therapist that suits you (you can also sort by being LGBTQ allied, etc) than an effing dentist that takes MaineCare.
Thank you!!
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Very good point - finding the right therapist for you is important.
Also OP, you may have to be flexible on the in-person front. Many therapists who treat adults have closed down their offices for in-person therapy since the pandemic, as most clients prefer the convenience and privacy telehealth provides. Not only can individuals meet anywhere but they don’t have to take time off from work traveling to and from appointments. Also, while a lot of stigma around mental health treatment has lifted, most of Maine is a small town and no one wants to run into someone they know in the waiting room.
I'm not entirely against telehealth and it looks like I'm going to have to go this route. I just prefer face to face. Thanks for your advice!
Just avoid the subscription services (imo they’re a money grab.) You want services straight from a clinician, not Talkspace or Cerebral, or whatever they push on your algorithms.
I’m in the midcoast area but found providers through psychology today. I tried three before finding my person. My therapist was originally booked up, put out feelers on my behalf, and I asked to be put on their waitlist. Six months later they had an opening, I had been receiving care through one of their referrals and it wasn’t perfect so I made the choice to move. Best choice ever. I can’t echo the other commenter’s post enough - it’s all about finding the right person.
I did virtual meetings with mine. Super effective without the rush and anxiety of getting to an appointment. Good luck.
There’s an episode of Tuca & Bertie that Bertie is trying to find a therapist and she gets one that said the first session should be like a job interview and you should be doing all the questions not them, after all you are the one hiring. It seems obvious now but I never thought about it that way.
In fact, it's downright depressing.
I had an amazing therapist based out of the Portland area while I'm down in York County. She offered walking therapy if I wanted to meet somewhere in the middle, but I opted for virtual and it was honestly better for me than in person ever was. We always had cameras on to read body language and feel more connected, but in many ways I felt more engaged bc I wasn't running there like an errand, it was truly just an hour vs how long driving to/from your appointment can take, and I felt safer being vulnerable because I was in my own space.
She takes limited insurance, so I had to pay out of pocket and it was costly but I did it 2x/mo for 2 years and made incredible progress. I agree with what someone else said that it can take time and sometimes it's about stretching your intentions to find the right fit. Would someone under my insurance been easier? Absolutely, but for me, it was worth the extra cost to have someone that I connected with.
This is her site: https://therisingsuncounseling.com/
I have been in virtual therapy since Oct '21 with my therapist at Psychology Specialists of Maine in Brunswick. I only live 5 minutes from her office, but I have come to really appreciate the benefits of doing it remotely. If I'm having a difficult day, I can "show up" with messy hair in my pajamas for our appointment. I get to sit in my private space feeling safe, and if for some reason there isn't privacy at my house that day, I can drive over to a park and use my phone.
Finding any therapist can be tricky right now, and finding one you vibe with can be harder. If OP is open to local*-ish* remote therapy, they improve their chances a lot.
It’s really hard to find anyone taking new providers. I eventually just gave up and tried it online and it was weird at first but I’m used to it now. I know that isn’t the answer that you were asking for but if you need help it might be best to start online even temporarily until you find someone in person. Wishing you the best.
I ended up having to use Teledoc bc I couldn’t find anyone with openings that took my insurance (Aetna). But on the bright side, Aetna doesn’t charge me any copays or deductibles for using Teledoc so I guess that’s something. My therapist is located in Florida and said that maine is pretty much begging people from out of state to get licensed to work with patients in Maine.
Same. Wonder if we have the same therapist lol
That would be hilarious. Her name is Abbie!
Ding ding ding!
Jeez small world! She’s so much better than anyone that I’ve had locally.
I tried a few before finding her, and then she just immediately felt like such a perfect fit. Congrats on also having a wonderful therapist! 😊
I meet with her tomorrow and I’m gonna tell her about this. She’ll love it lol
I relate so much to the issues with finding people here who take Aetna!
I have had sooo many providers say that they take every insurance but Aetna. Aggravating. Plus my policy is through work which is a nonprofit so my Aetna policy is probably extra terrible.
Why not interested in doing it online?
I mean yes, there are some clear advantages to in-person, but FWIW I've been doing it online for a couple years now and it has still been massively helpful.
I dont really have a good reason other than I prefer to do it in person. knowing myself I would take it more seriously if I had to be somewhere.
I think you’re letting great get in the way of good
Here is what I would say — online therapy is better than no therapy. A good therapist will be effective even through telehealth. I am not saying you are using this as an avoidance tactic, but that MAY be the case… only you can determine if that’s true.
That's called anxiety and a therapist can help.
Yeah, everyone’s saying try online therapy but they don’t accept my insurance. Nearly 4 years looking for someone online or in person or even a support group but COVID hit the options hard
Will your insurance company provide some options for you? They must have other customers with the same challenges.
That’s a really good idea, thank you. In previous experiences that didn’t go well for me but I have much better insurance now and it didn’t even cross my mind. I’ll definitely give them a call. Thanks again.
To add to this, my therapist doesn’t take my insurance so it falls into “out of network.” If your insurance has gotten better, and you have them on the phone, also ask about medically necessary out-of-network costs. They often put the deductible absurdly high but you might be able to get out of network care and then get reimbursed on the backend after you hit your max.
Thank you!
Try Scott Kaplan at Pineland Farms in New Gloucester. He was my therapist for one year and did a great job.
So true. Finding a therapist is hard, and finding a GOOD therapist is even harder. I also was really opposed to online therapy but I could find more available options by searching beyond my immediate area and now I actually prefer online. A good platform to try if you're open to it is www.mindandmatch.com All of their therapists provide therapy remotely and the platform allows you to connect with therapists that match your preferences (race, ethnicity, gender, etc). Hopefully this helps, best of luck!
Have you tried lifestance.com ?
Other than what has already been mentioned, another avenue I took was looking into providers across state lines. Because there is such a need in Maine and New England is so small, some licenses cover a few states. Lifestance Health, for example, is in Portland, but is primarily based out of NH. They do in person and telehealth.
I found my current therapist through Lifestance. Had a little hiccup before intake where they had the wrong number for me and we played phone tag, but they were quick to get me an appointment once I left a pretty frustrated voicemail (and overall they do seem to be responsive to patients even though, like most providers, they are incredibly busy). I got an appointment for in-person therapy within the week.
Similar experience for me as well, although I had a bit longer of a wait as I was looking for medication management (which I love my doc for).
So glad you found them too! ♥️
Same applies to doctors and dentists as well. It's definitely not exclusive to therapists.
Have you tried looking on websites like Psychology Today, by chance?
I would suggest reaching out to your local county action program to see if they have a comprehensive list of licensed therapists in your area!
Harry Katz, in Portland at the old train station. Amazing guy, really cares and is very genuine. Helped me through so much. Usually busy but definitely can make time, havent talked to him in a while. If you can't find him online, let me know I guess.
I was able to start seeing a therapist that works specifically with the patients at the family medicine facility where my PCP works. My PCP set it up for me and everything. Luckily I also think it’s been a good fit. My only other therapist wasn’t really very helpful for me. Good luck!
Also reach out to Maine Behavioral Healthcare. I've been using them for my meds, and I find them really kind, and make it easy. I know it's not simple to reach out like this, it took a lot to do. I'm proud of you.
I'm really happy with teledoc. I know you said in person, but I found it nearly impossible in Maine. I'm also one of those icky people from away, so my telehealth practitioner is licensed in both states.
BetterHelp!!
It may be your insurance (or lack thereof). There are certain insurance carriers that Maine providers just don’t want to work with
You aren't kidding. Going on 2 years now on the CHCS waiting list. It's just sad in general how hard it is to find the right therapist for you but also having the resources and insurance to receive treatment.
It is very sad. Especially if you are looking for a therapist that takes your insurance. Many therapists stop taking insurance and only take private pay as soon as they can which is $100+ a session. I was looking hard in 2019. Called everyone. Even tried Sweetser. (Don’t try Sweetser). Eventually I found a counselor for $65 a session. But she was just talk therapy and couldn’t help with actual trauma. So I had to keep looking. I started seeing counselors at my university. I gave up for a while during the pandemic and then finally tried better help last year. I had the best therapist I have ever met through better help! It being online only made it better. I didn’t have to drive. I could message her at any time(which was the BEST). You can’t do that with a regular in office therapist. Plus no insurance bullshit. Just a monthly fee! (With that said BetterHelp has faced lawsuits for some unethical practices and some therapists on their site are shitty. I just got lucky!) but it is definitely worth a try if your mental health needs it.
Also, you can call around to therapists and ask if they do supervision. If they do, they might have students/associate therapists (still needing to take the exam) that could see you.
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Pm’d you OP
Foundations Counseling in York. That’s where we go.
Lifestance health has telehealth options available, I'd give them a call
Psychology Today/find a therapist
Talkspace. app is effortless and has all avenues of help.
Can't find one can't afford one either
I was in need of a therapist in the height of the pandemic. I too called literally every single number I could find. I also scheduled several over the web with anyone in the country. It took me 9 months to find someone. It was a rough time.
It’s seriously way harder than it should be. My husband just went through this. I had to take a day off work to help call through the list because it was so exhausting. We got to our 10th voicemail and someone gave us a call back.
I hope you have the same luck or better!
I just found a therapist I'm Scarborough. I messaged them last week and have my first in person appointment this week. You can message me if you want
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I use Better Help and I actually really like it! My shitty health insurance charges me more for therapy sessions than what I pay BH for 3 months of services at a time, which works out to $55/wk. I was matched with one therapist and saw them for awhile, then decided it wasn’t working out. I requested to be matched with someone else, and then I got to choose from a list/bios of available therapists. That was super helpful!
Lifestance seems to usually be taking patients. I just broke up with my therapist there, but she's in Portland and sees patients in person.
Do you have insurance coverage? If yes ask them for a referral. Or tactfully mention up front your insurance coverage when trying to get an appointment. Counseling is an under-funded area to start with, and it seems like there is an exodus of healthcare pro's out of Maine for several years for multiple reasons.
Better help
Betterhelp.com if you can get over your online hang-up. If you look at it as an excuse not a preference it would help..
There's literally an app you can download on your phone. It's fucking advertised EVERYWHERE.
BetterHelp
Hope you find someone soon.
What's even more sad is that is what is required instead of your friends and family being able to help. Therapists are just as fucked as the next guy. It's all a sham. Reddit hives u more sound advice than a rich Portland dr. Who could care less about you other than what your insurance brings to the table. Get better friends who will listen and give sound advice. Harder than finding what you are looking for but worth wayyy more.
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Don’t know why you’re getting downvoted for this. I use it and it’s great.
I had to go through a couple of therapists there before I found someone I clicked with, but it’s been a very good match. I don’t have a flexible schedule, nor can I go physically to an office in my small town, so online therapy was the only option.
Probably getting downvoted for their unethical business practices and some of their therapists are junk. Contractor platforms tend to have a really wide range of contractor quality, especially if they have bad quality assessment mechanisms. Hence you being able to find a good therapist even if the company is a bit suss in general.
Even when it comes to getting help, people need to be right.
biggestofbears t1_j6jc5oh wrote
www.psychologytoday.com has a great option for finding therapists in your area that take your insurance and are accepting new patients.