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By U.S. Army Lt. Col. Melissa Boyd, Licensed Clinical Psychologist, Defense Health Agency-Public Health
Service members encounter a wide range of both rewarding and demanding experiences throughout their careers. Some unique challenges can include frequent relocations, family separations, irregular work hours, and deployments. To help manage the mental health challenges that may result from these experiences, there are free and confidential resources available to support and enhance the well-being of service members.
Free and confidential mental health services
Service members’ ability to regulate emotions in healthy ways plays a crucial part in their ability to cope with challenges. Military OneSource and Military and Family Life Counselors (https://www.militaryonesource.mil/confidential-counseling/) are examples of free and confidential mental health counseling programs that offer military members and their families counseling to address short-term, non-medical concerns. Counselors within these programs are equipped to help service members improve healthy stress management, time management, and decision-making strategies and tools, including the ability to problem solve, manage conflict, build coping skills, and adapt to change. In addition, these programs foster health, resiliency, and readiness.
Military OneSource
Military OneSource is a U.S. Department of Defense program that provides free, short-term, solution-focused, confidential, non-medical counseling services for a wide range of issues, including relationship conflicts, stress management, parenting issues, coping with grief and loss, and managing deployments. Military OneSource supports active-duty, National Guard and Reserve service members and their families anywhere in the world and is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week at no cost. The program is comprised of master’s- or doctoral-level mental health professionals (in psychology, counseling, social work or marriage and family counseling) who are licensed to practice independently. In addition to providing counseling for military- and life-related stressors, Military OneSource offers webinars and online trainings on topics including tax services, spouse employment, relocation and deployment, and stress management.
Counseling sessions can take place in a variety of forms:
In person - Face-to-face confidential counseling in an office setting with a counselor located in the local community.
Telehealth - Confidential telephonic Military OneSource counseling for service members and family members who are unable to attend in-person counseling sessions. Telephonic counseling is only available to adults aged 18 and older.
Secure online chat - Online counseling via secure chat involving a real-time conversation with a counselor using instant messaging. Military OneSource uses state-of-the-art technology to transfer information over the internet securely. Chat-based counseling is only available to adults aged 18 and older.
Secure video sessions - Video counseling requiring a video-enabled computer. Military OneSource uses state-of-the-art technology to transfer information over the internet securely.
Children ages 6 to 17 are eligible to receive counseling in person or through video only. Family sessions are also provided for children ages 6 to 12 who may attend with a parent or caregiver present. For youth ages 13 to 17, a parent or caregiver must be available to give consent at the start of each counseling session.
For diagnosable conditions and concerns that are best suited for long-term care services not provided through Military OneSource, additional support and treatment options are available through military medical treatment facilities, embedded behavioral health clinics, and Tricare network providers.
According to Military OneSource (https://www.militaryonesource.mil/benefits/confidential-counseling/), the following issues are not appropriate or suitable for its counseling services:
• Active suicidal or homicidal thoughts
• Sexual assault
• Child abuse
• Domestic violence
• Alcohol and substance abuse
• Mental health conditions such as depression
Counseling through Military OneSource is also considered not suitable for individuals who are—
• Taking prescribed psychoactive medication
• Receiving therapy with another practitioner
• Involved in Family Advocacy Program cases
• Undergoing fitness-for-duty evaluations
• Undergoing court-ordered counseling
Military and Family Life Counseling (MFLC)
The Military and Family Life Counseling Program (https://www.militaryonesource.mil/benefits/military-family-life-counseling-program/) provides free, confidential counseling to service members, their families, and survivors on or near installations. Counselors are licensed to practice independently in the location where they are providing services and are trained to deliver valuable counseling services, briefings, and presentations to the military community. The MFLC program was designed to deploy counselors rapidly for short- and long-term assignments based on each military branch’s specific need.
The MFLC Program provides non-medical counseling for issues requiring short-term attention, including everyday stressors, deployment and reintegration concerns, parenting, grief and loss, and marital issues. MFLCs conduct consultation and outreach services to more than 200 military installations or nearby civilian communities located in most of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, U.S. territories and commonwealths, and over 25 foreign countries including areas considered hazardous duty/danger zones. MFLCs provide support to individuals, couples, families and groups for a range of issues including, but not limited to, deployment stress, reintegration, relocation adjustment, separation, anger management, conflict resolution, parenting, parent-child communication, relationship and family issues, coping skills, homesickness, grief and loss, isolation from extended family members, children coping with the absence of a parent, child education, and spousal employment.
Additionally, there are Child and Youth Behavioral Military and Family Life (https://www.militaryonesource.mil/benefits/military-family-life-counseling-program/) Counselor programs that specifically provide support to military children and families on topics including, but not limited to, identifying feelings, bullying, conflict resolution, self-esteem, anger management, family concerns, problem-solving, coping with deployment and reunification, transition and moving, sibling and parental relationships, time management, and divorce.
Confidential mental health resources
Confidential counseling provides service members and their loved ones with resources and support to address a variety of issues and build important skills to tackle life's challenges.
Confidential counseling is crucial for the military because it allows service members to seek support openly and discuss personal concerns when needed without fear of repercussions on their career or unit standing. With confidential services, a service member’s personal information is not provided to their military chain of command, shared with family or friends, or released to other agencies. Although services are confidential, one caveat is that counselors are required by law to report illegal activities or situations where there could be danger to the service member or to others. These include suspected domestic violence and child or elder abuse or neglect.
Other benefits of confidential military counseling:
• Reduces stigma - By ensuring privacy, it removes the stigma associated with seeking mental health support, making it more likely for service members to access necessary care.
• Improves unit cohesion - Addressing personal issues through confidential counseling can help service members better manage their emotions and perform effectively within their unit.
• Builds resilience - Open communication with a counselor allows service members to develop coping mechanisms and build resilience against the unique stressors of military life.
• Supports family well-being - Confidential counseling is also available for military families, helping them navigate challenges related to deployments, frequent moves, and other stressors.
• Provided access to specialized support - Military counseling programs often provide specialized support tailored to military experiences, such as combat trauma or deployment-related issues.
In addition to mental health counseling services, there are apps that promote healthy techniques for managing stress, seeking help with life challenges, addressing health problems, and implementing safety measures against harmful behaviors.
Additional mental health resources for service members, veterans, and families:
• Center for Deployment Psychology (https://deploymentpsych.org/
• Psychological Health Resource Center (https://www.health.mil/Military-Health-Topics/Centers-of-Excellence/Psychological-Health-Center-of-Excellence/Psychological-Health-Resource-Center)
• Warfighter Wellness (https://warfighterwellness.org/)
• DOD Suicide Prevention Spotlight (https://www.defense.gov/Spotlights/Suicide-Prevention/)
• Military Crisis Line: Dial 988, then press 1; or text 838255
• Community Resource Guides (https://crg.health.mil/Pages/default.aspx)
• Postvention Toolkit for Military Suicide Loss (https://www.dspo.mil/Portals/113/Documents/PostventionToolkit.pdf)
• Veterans Crisis Line: Dial 988, then press 1; or text 838255 (https://www.veteranscrisisline.net/)
The Defense Health Agency supports our Nation by improving health and building readiness—making extraordinary experiences ordinary and exceptional outcomes routine.
NOTE: The mention of any non-federal entity and/or its products is for informational purposes only, and is not to be construed or interpreted, in any manner, as federal endorsement of that non-federal entity or its products.
| Date Taken: | 05.20.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 05.22.2025 09:36 |
| Story ID: | 498510 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 20 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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