F
EELINGstressedandover-
whelmedcanbea lonely
roadtotravel,especiallyif
youdon’tknowwhereto
turnforhelp.If thesefeel-
ingshavepersistedfora
while,youmightbesuffer-
ingfromclinicaldepres-
sion,a conditionthatrequirestreatment.
Andyou’redefinitelynotalone.More
than 300 millionpeopleworldwidesuffer
fromdepression,accordingtoa 2015re-
portbytheWorldHealthOrganisation,
anda further 264 millionareaffectedby
anxietydisorders.
Decidingtoseea mentalhealthprofes-
sionalisa bravestepintherightdirec-
tionbutit doesn’tcomecheapandfigur-
ingouthowtopayforcounsellingcanbe
a hugechallenge.
Face-to-facetherapycancostanything
fromR600toR1 200 a sessionandmost
medicalaidswon’tcoverongoingthera-A visit to a privatepsychologistor counsellor canbe
a costlybusiness – but therearemoreaffordablealternatives
for thosewhoneedhelp BYLINDSAYDEFREITAS
py,accordingtoMerylDaCostaofthe
SouthAfricanDepressionandAnxiety
Group(Sadag).
Thegoodnewsisthereareotherop-
tionsavailablethatdon’tcostanarm
anda leg.
A newlow-costmentalhealthfacility
centrethatofferscounsellingforR50a
sessionrecentlyopeneditsdoorsinCape
Townandissettoprovidehelpforpeo-
plewhooftenfallthroughthecracksof
SouthAfrica’shealthcaresystem.
TheCounsellingHubis thebrainchild
oftheSouthAfricanCollegeofApplied
PsychologyFoundation(Sacap)andthe
KaplanKushlik EducationalTrust.
Itoffersone-on-onesessionsaswellas
freegroupworkshops,allowingpeople
withlowerincomestoseekprofessional
support.
Butthisnewoutfitisn’ttheonlyalter-
nativeforthoseofusunabletoforkout
wheninneedofa therapist.NONPROFITORGANISATIONS(NPOs)
HowtheyworkFacilitiessuchasThe
CounsellingHuboffertherapyorcoun-
sellingatdiscountedratesorforfree,
althoughmanyNPOshavewaitingperi-
odsbecauseofhighdemand.
If youdon’tknowwheretostart,your
bestoptionistocontactSadag,where
a counsellorwillbeabletopointyouin
therightdirection.“Onceyougetonthe
linewithoneofourlaycounsellors
they’llassessyoursituationand,if need
be,putyouintouchwitha counsellor,
psychiatristorpsychologist,”spokesper-
sonKaylaPhillipssays.
“Ifyou’reonmedicalaidwe’llputyou
intouchwithsomeoneintheprivate
sector.If not,we’llreferyoutothenear-
estNPO.
“Shouldyourmentalhealthcrisisbe
anemergencyourcounsellorswillalert
yourfamilyandgetanambulancesent
toyourhometoremedythesituation.”THERAPY ON A BUDGET
44 | 22 AUGUST 2019 you.co.za^