Mental Health

Information about mental health resources.

More About This Info

These resources were originally crowdsourced by the Asheville, NC community in the weeks immediately after Hurricane Helene. Some of this info has been recently updated, but please contact listed orgs to confirm the most current information.

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While our goal is to offer useful information, we do not endorse external content or take responsibility for how it is used. Please review these resources carefully and make the decisions that work best for you.

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Feel stressed, anxious, or overwhelmed? These are normal feelings following a disaster. In fact, research has shown that mental health needs typically peak around six months after disasters like hurricanes. Here is a list of free and sliding scale resources for support.

Helplines

Tips & Tools for Coping

Clinical Mental Health

Holistic Wellness

Support Groups

Other Resources

Past Listings

Helplines

National (US)

• Disaster Distress Helpline (1-800-985-5990.). Free, confidential, available 24/7 in multiple languages. Call or text. Crisis support for people experiencing emotional distress related to natural or human-caused disasters.
• 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: 988. Free, confidential, available 24/7. Call or text. Emotional support for people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress.
• Crisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741. Free, confidential, available 24/7. Chat with a trained crisis counselor.

North Carolina

• Hope4NC Helpline (1-855-587-3463). Free, confidential, and available 24/7. This number connects North Carolinians to mental health and resilience supports to help them cope and build resilience during times of crisis.
• Hope4Healers Helpline (919-226-2002). Free, confidential, and available 24/7. Mental health and resilience support for healthcare professionals, emergency medical specialists, first responders, healthcare workers, and their families.
• NC Peer Warmline. 1-855-PEERS NC (855-733-7762). Free, confidential, and available 24/7. Peer Support Specialists living in recovery with mental illness or substance use disorder offer non-clinical support and resources to those in crisis.

Tips & Tools for Coping

Practical, science-based tools for coping with stress from Resources for Resilience. These can be done alone or with a friend to help you re-center in a stressful moment!

• Sing or hum. Singing or humming can be a simple way to recenter and soothe your nervous system.
• Take a quick walk. A quick walk can soothe nerves and gently bring the thinking brain back online.
• Sip water. An action as easy as taking a sip of water can help bring you calm in stressful situations.
• Lean into a wall. When you feel triggered, focusing on a physical activity like leaning into a wall can help reset the brain..
• Lift or move a heavy object. Mindful attention to the simple act of lifting or moving a heavy object can bring awareness to the body and calm the brain.

More tips at SAMHSA: Coping Tips for Traumatic Events & Disasters.

Clinical Mental Health

North Carolina

• NC Mental Health Providers Hurricane Helene. Online and in-person in NC. Free and sliding scale options. Licensed, clinical mental health providers willing to offer free or sliding-scale fees for individuals affected by the hurricane. (12/29/24)
• Black Mountain Counseling Center. +1 (828) 388-7433. Want to talk to a licensed mental health professional local to Black Mountain, Swannanoa, or Old Fort? We are ready and able to help. No issue is too big or too small to talk through with us. Text or call and leave a message, and a licensed, local counselor will get back to you as soon as possible. (12/29/24)

National

• Better Help. Currently offering 3 months of free online therapy for anyone impacted by Hurricane Helene using the voucher code: Hurricane-Helene-support (12/29/24)

Holistic Wellness

• Hurricane Helene Free Wellness & Healing Resources. Online and in-person in Western NC. Includes free one-on-one support offerings by holistic practitioners including grief support, massage and body care, and energy work. Also includes free group support opportunities. (12/29/24)

Support Groups

Online

• Listening Circles for WNC Residents Affected by Hurricane Helene. Online. Free. Wednesdays through January 15 | 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. EST.  Big events can hit us hard and affect us in many ways. Listening Circles help us name what is most difficult about them and practice tools that can help with the stress, right now. Join us as we lean on one another and highlight what is getting us through this difficult time. Join using this link. (12/29/24)

Western North Carolina

• Open Connection Practice with Seek Healing. Online and in person in Asheville, NC and Waynesville, NC. Support meetings for those recovering from trauma and/or addiction, as well as those who are not. No conversation topic is off limits, and we all show up to help each other heal. Every meeting is professionally facilitated to make space for everyone to feel really listened to, and for us all to get real with each other (including the facilitator!) See calendar for meeting info. (12/29/24)

Other Resources

• The Emotional Lifecycle of a Disaster.
• Child Life Disaster Relief. Resources for supporting children before, during, and after disasters.
• The Steady Collective. The Steady Collective distributes Naloxone, and provides syringe exchange services, wound care and a range of other services in three locations around Asheville. All of our services are free and confidential.

Past Listings

Under review

• Hurricane Helene NC Mental Health Services (compilation google doc) – Please note, not all of these services are free
• Black Mountain Counseling Center: +1 (828) 388-7433. Our counselors are available for free, pro-bono calls and virtual appointments depending on their personal situations. If email is easier for you, you can email us at helenesupport@blackmountaincounseling.org
• New Leaf Behavioral Health, a non-profit based out of Raleigh, is offering free virtual crisis counseling for residents & aid workers affected by Helene. You will need access to the internet, a smartphone or computer, and a place to talk. All ages are accepted. Schedule by calling  919-781-8370 or emailing info@nlbh.org. Mention that you are a resident impacted by the hurricane or helping with relief efforts and you will be routed to free help.