Free online therapy for teens and young adults is coming to Seattle
The City of Seattle is expanding virtual therapy and mental health services for young people.
City leaders announced a new partnership with Talkspace, an online behavioral health care company, on Tuesday. Those services are now available across Seattle, free of charge to anyone between the ages of 13 and 24.
The partnership is funded by a joint $14.55 million safety and security investment the city and Seattle Public Schools announced in August. That came after several incidents of gun violence disrupted the 2023-24 school year, including a shooting outside of Garfield High School that left one student dead and the community reeling.
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Here's how the program works: Teens and young adults can sign up for services at talkspace.com/seattle. They'll then get matched with their own licensed provider in Washington state, and have access to one live video session with them every month.
Participants also get access to the Talkspace Go app, a self-guided mental health program catered to teens. They can also message with their therapist outside of appointment times.
The goal is to make it easier for young people to access mental health support, said Chris Alejano, director of the city Department of Education and Early Learning's K-12 and post-secondary division.
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"Everyone is on their phones these days, particularly teens," Alejano said. "So if having an app at their fingertip helps them access that support and additional information, then I think that's great that there continues to be sort of this evolution of what that support can look like."
The initiative is part of the city's ongoing efforts to address a youth mental health crisis in the aftermath of Covid.
"Our young people are facing unprecedented mental health challenges, and my administration remains committed to building a comprehensive ecosystem of services to support the wellbeing of all Seattle students," Mayor Bruce Harrell said Tuesday in a press release. "This new partnership with Talkspace will remove barriers to accessing counseling and support, ensuring our students have the resources they need to build resilience and healthy coping skills to thrive in school and life."
The city plans to add more telehealth providers to the program later this month.
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Sami West
Education Reporter
Sami West is a reporter covering schools in Seattle and across the Puget Sound region. She’s been on the education beat for over five years and has reported extensively on the countless ways COVID has impacted schools, students, and families. Her coverage has also focused on school finances, special education issues, the importance of early childhood education, and the growing youth mental health crisis.
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