How to Maximize Your Health Benefits

We are nearing the end of 2023 in just over 2 months from now, and we wanted to share with you all how you can use your extended health benefits for therapy today! People often do not use their extended health benefits to the fullest because they may feel that they don’t have “enough” to get started in counselling. We want to show you how to use your benefits effectively, especially if you haven’t use them yet this year!

Many people don’t know how much coverage they have or who it works for, and that is the  thing you need to figure out first! After you know this, you can make a plan for how to take care of your mental health.

First Steps

• Check your maximum coverage
• Check when your benefits renew: (i.e. January 1st or 1 year from your start date, the school year)
• Confirm which practioners are covered for your plan: (Psychologists, RCC’s, CCC’s, etc.)
• Schedule a free consultation call with a counsellor
• Confirm the license and availability of the practitioner you choose to see.

How to use your Mental Health Coverage

By planning out how to best use your coverage this year, you can address any mental health or relational concerns and be set up for success for next year when your benefits renew. If you don’t use your benefits up this year, they don’t carry over. So you either use them or lose them

We have included information on ways to maximize both $500 and $1000 of coverage as these are the most common amounts we see when people have extended health benefits, but you may be lucky and have even more!!

$500 of Coverage

For example:

• If you get $500 towards counselling you could have 3.5 sessions COVERED at $140 per session if you book 4 sessions.

• With bi-weekly appointments you could start now and end in December. In 2024 you could could continue seeing your counsellor for the first 8 weeks of the year – meaning you could have counselling from October-March.

What Can You Do with 8 Sessions?

If you follow our formula above and use your $500 of coverage at the end of the year and then have it reset in January and continue to use it you can do the following:

• • Develop coping strategies for anxiety and panic attacks
  • Create a self care plan for tackling depression and seasonal depression
  • Work on relationship communication and conflict skills
  • Gain skills for implementing boundaries
  • Work on self-esteem, perfectionism and self-criticism
  • Grow in self awareness
  • Have accountability towards your career and life goals
  • Maintain your mental health

$1000 of Coverage

For example:

• If you get $1000 towards counselling you could see a counsellor for the next 7 weeks FULLY COVERED at $140 per session.
• In 2024, You could continue seeing your counsellor for the first 7 weeks of the year, or space it out to twice a month and be covered for counselling for 14 weeks – meaning you could have counselling from October-April covered!

What Can You Do with 15 Sessions?

If you follow our formula above and use your $1000 of coverage at the end of the year and then have it reset in January and continue to use it you can do the following:

• • Develop anxiety and depression coping strategies & understand the root of your mental health struggles
  • Work on relationship communication and conflict skills
  • Process past life events, break ups, and grief
  • Trauma processing for past events
  • Work on your relationship with substances, food, or your body
  • Grow in self awareness
  • Have accountability towards your career and life goals
  • Maintain your mental health

What if I don’t have anything to work on in counselling?

We may be biased, but we believe that everyone can benefit from counselling support! Trained clinical counsellors can help you grow in many different areas, even if things are going well!

Your extended health benefits do not carry over, so using your benefits in 2023 to start a therapeutic relationship is a great way to utilize them and do preventative or maintenance work.

In the future when you do go through life changes or stressors you already have an established support person who you can trust!

What if I still need more counselling after my coverage is out?

We wish that everyone’s extended health would cover as much counselling as they need! We encourage you to chat with your counsellor about how much coverage you have and make a plan for how to use your sessions best. If you still need counselling after your coverage runs out for the year your counsellor can talk to you about budgeting, sliding scale options, as well as refer you to low-cost options for additional support

I still have questions about how to use my benefits!

If you still have questions about how to best use your benefits, reach out to our admin team and they will be happy to answer your questions about your specific health plan, mental health needs and goals.