Recovery & Mental Health Support

Community Behavioral Health Centers

Community Behavioral Health Centers (CBHCs) are one-stop shops for mental health and substance use services and treatment. The network includes 26 centers across Massachusetts offering immediate, confidential care for mental health and substance use needs. CBHCs are open daily for walk-ins, routine appointments, and crisis care, including Mobile Crisis Intervention.

  • MCI services are for anyone in Massachusetts experiencing a mental health or substance use crisis. MCI services are provided by trained professionals who can travel to your location or work with you at a CBHC to assess your needs, provide immediate assistance, and determine the best path forward.

    • Instead of going to the ER, MCI services allow anyone going through a crisis to either walk into a CBHC or call for a team to come to their location and access immediate mental health care.

    • Anyone can use MCI at any time, no insurance needed.

    • All crisis services offered by CBHCs are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year (including holidays).

  • CCS is a less restrictive alternative to inpatient hospitalization for people in need of short-term, overnight crisis care. Programs have home-like, friendly, and comfortable environments that offer a feeling of community while maintaining a safe and secure setting.

    • CBHCs offer both Adult (18+) and Youth (18 and under) CCS programs with services including individual, group, and family therapy; medication management; crisis intervention; and future crisis prevention planning.

    • CCS is covered by MassHealth plans and some commercial insurers.

    • All crisis services offered by CBHCs are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year (including holidays).

  • Routine Outpatient Services are comprehensive outpatient mental health and substance use services for MassHealth members, also covered by some commercial insurers. These services are available from 8am–8pm on weekdays and 9am–5pm on weekends, both in-person at CBHCs and via telehealth, with extended hours.

    • Services include same-day mental health and substance use evaluation, assessment, and individualized treatment; individual/family/group therapy; psychiatric medication consultations; peer support services; medication for addiction treatment; care coordination; referrals to treatment; and timely follow-up appointments.

CBHCs are closely connected to the Massachusetts Behavioral Health Help Line (BHHL). The BHHL is a 24/7 clinical hotline staffed by trained behavioral health providers and peer coaches who offer clinical assessment, treatment referrals, and crisis triage services. The BHHL is available by phone and text at 833-773-2445, and by online chat. Help Line staff directly connect callers with the nearest CBHC when appropriate.

Home Base

Home Base is a national nonprofit dedicated to healing the invisible wounds of war at no cost for veterans of all eras, service members, military families, and Families of the Fallen, regardless of their discharge status or geographical location. To get care from Home Base or recommend an individual for a program, complete the Connect to Care form or call (617) 724-5202.

  • The Home Base Outpatient Clinic in Charlestown offers in-person and virtual care to veterans, service members, and family members within Massachusetts who are affected by invisible wounds, such as PTSD, depression, mild cognitive impairment due to traumatic brain injury, substance use disorders, and related conditions.

    • Offerings include comprehensive evaluations, case management, individual virtual therapy, group therapy, couples therapy, parenting education groups, reintegration groups, stress reduction and resiliency groups, fitness, nutrition, yoga, art, and tai chi.

    • Home Base’s Outpatient Clinic also offers several types of medication for alcohol and other substance use disorders, including suboxone. Veterans can discuss their interest in pharmacotherapy during their intake evaluation or at a later time to arrange for a consultation.

  • The SOAR Program is a fully virtual intensive outpatient recovery program for veterans and service members with problematic substance use and co-occurring mental health conditions within the state of Massachusetts to receive professional support and evidence-based care to help meet their individual recovery goals and needs.

    • The program runs for 4–8 weeks on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 3–4:30pm.

    • Individuals are not required to be in individual therapy or sober for a certain amount of time to participate. Participants are supported in meeting their individual recovery goals, including reducing use and/or abstinence.

    • To connect to care at Home Base or recommend an individual for this program, please complete the Connect to Care form or call (617) 724-5202.

  • The Intensive Clinical Program (ICP) is a two-week outpatient treatment program designed to treat veterans, service members, and their family members with up to two years of treatment, combining evidence-based therapy with complementary and alternative medicine and high-level peer support.

    • Treatment, food, lodging and transportation expenses are covered for participants, including veterans traveling from outside of the state of Massachusetts.

    • Insurance will be billed for ICP participants who have it, but participants will not be billed for any co-pays or remaining balances after insurance payments.

    • Family members and support people are encouraged to participate and, as an integral part of the healing process, are provided with their own education and support opportunities.

    The Comprehensive Brain Health and Trauma Program (ComBHaT) provides the Special Operations and Explosive Ordnance Disposal community with an integrated, multidisciplinary specialist evaluation, treatment, and care coordination.

    The Intensive Clinical Program for Families of the Fallen (ICPFF) is designed to treat Survivors of Fallen Warriors with up to two years of treatment in a two-week program, combining evidence-based therapy with complementary and alternative medicine.

    The Native Intensive Clinical Program was built through consultation with Native American Veterans, tribal leaders and healthcare administrators to provide long sought after healing and lifesaving care to Native American Veterans, Service Members and their Families at no cost.

  • While people may not be able to control stressful events, they can learn to control their response to stress and, in turn, improve their ability to adapt more effectively to stress. Home Base’s Resiliency Programs are six-session educational mind-body courses that help veterans, service members, and military-connected family members manage stress more effectively:

    Home Base also offers a Resilience Instructor Certification Programto train and certify instructors to administer the Resilient Warrior and Resilient Family courses, supporting individuals and organizations in the non-profit or government sectors or otherwise who will offer the groups at no cost and work in collaboration with Home Base to track program outcomes.

    Skillful Parenting is a seven-session educational series designed to help families feel more confident in parenting, provide healthy boundaries and routines for children, and reduce parenting stress.

    • This program is designed for adults with parenting responsibilities for school-age children in the home between ages 5-14 who are looking for practical tools and skills to support their parenting needs. Complete an interest form to be notified of future groups.

    The Impact of Trauma Educational Series is a four-session educational series for veterans, service members and adult members of military families interested in learning about the impact of trauma on relationships and mental health, including PTSD and other post-traumatic reactions, and evidence-based therapies offered at Home Base to treat these conditions.

    • Sessions are held virtually, via Zoom, every Monday from 11am–12:15pm, typically beginning the first Monday of each month. Attending all four sessions is recommended, as each session builds on the previous material. Click here to register.

  • Adventure Series events are open to veterans, service members, military families, and Families of the Fallen. Past activities have included skiing, skating, museum visits, sporting events and more. They are open to both adaptive and able-bodied participants.

  • The New England Warrior Health and Fitness (WHF) Program is dedicated to helping veterans, service members, and their families achieve their health and wellness goals through evidence-based exercise prescriptions, nutrition guidance, mindset coaching and social connections. Click here to register. The program provides participants with:

    • regular scheduled workouts with a Home Base strength coach;

    • 1-on-1 nutrition counseling;

    • bi-monthly educational workshops;

    • Warrior mindset coaching;

    • team building and social events (boxing, spin, yoga, etc); and

    • regular updates via web-based communication.

    Participants of the WHF Program will have in-person and virtual access to Home Base certified strength and conditioning specialists, registered dietitian nutritionists and mental skills coaching as support during the 90-day program and beyond.

    • Pre-participation screenings and health assessments are required for all participants.

    • All participants must commit to attending at least one workout a week.

    • Individuals of all fitness abilities are eligible to participate.

  • The Massachusetts Military Heroes Fund (MMHF) serves post-9/11 Families of the Fallen from Massachusetts who lost an active-duty service member since September 11, 2001. MMHF at Home Base provides critical mental healthcare as well as financial assistance, advocacy and benefits navigation, and specialized referrals to post-9/11 Massachusetts Families of the Fallen.

    • Basic Needs offers limited financial assistance for post-9/11 Massachusetts Families of the Fallen whose financial security has been compromised by the loss of an active-duty service member for missed rental and mortgage payments, utility bills, and other basic necessities.

    • Emergency Casualty Assistance offers emergency financial assistance for post-9/11 Massachusetts Families of the Fallen impacted by the loss of an active-duty service member who was an immediate family member.

    • Family Enrichment offers annual financial assistance — up to $1,000 per year — for post-9/11 Massachusetts Families of the Fallen impacted by the loss of an active-duty service member to be used for services and programs that can enrich their quality of life, including but not limited to uninsured mental health counseling fees, life-coaching services and career-counseling services.

    To connect with MMHF at Home Base, please contact Diane Nealon, LICSW, Director of the Families of the Fallen Program, at dnealon@mgh.harvard.edu.

Peer Recovery Support Centers

Peer Recovery Support Centers (PRSC) in Massachusetts are free accessible peer-led spaces that provide individuals in recovery from substance use, as well as their family members and loved ones, an opportunity to offer and receive support in their community. PRSCs are warm, welcoming spaces grounded in the values and principles of Recovery and Multiple Pathways, offering human connection, community inclusion, and peer support, as well as access to non-clinical resources.

The Massachusetts Overdose Prevention Helpline is staffed by a dedicated team of harm reductionists and people with lived and living experience with overdose. It connects people using drugs with trained operators who can call for help in case of overdose. It is not a recovery or treatment helpline. The service is available to anyone at risk of overdose.

Peer Respites & Alternatives to Hospitalization

Peer respites provide an alternative to psychiatric hospitalization for people experiencing deep emotional and/or mental distress. There are only a few dozen in the country offering an alternative to/supporting people to avoid psychiatric hospitalization and other more invasive/disruptive interventions. 

 

Wildflower Alliance

The Wildflower Alliance’s Afiya House in Northampton was the first peer-run respite in Massachusetts. Afiya believes the wisdom gained from our lived experiences is invaluable, and sharing stories has great potential to create connection and support for others on their own journeys.

Everyone working at Afiya has lived experience with some combination of extreme emotional or altered states, psychiatric diagnoses, trauma, living without a home, navigating the mental health and other systems, being on benefits, addictions, surviving abuse, and more. There is no cost, no insurance required, minimal paperwork, and no curfews, meetings, or other restrictions.

  • The Afiya House is a regular house with 3 private bedrooms that lock from the inside where those seeking respite can stay up to 7 nights, coming and going as they please, with 24/7 peer support available. Stays are open to anyone age 18+ with an address in Central and Western Massachusetts. Transportation is available from most places in Western Massachusetts. The number to reach Afiya is (413) 570-2990.

 

Kiva Centers

Juniper, Karaya, and La Paz are part of a statewide Massachusetts-based initiative and operated by the Kiva Centers. All Peer Respite Advocates at the peer respites have lived/living experiences that may include mental health diagnoses, trauma, emotional distress, and substance use recovery. In addition to a mobile component, the peer respites offer rest and reflection for all people experiencing emotional distress.

Mobile Peer Respite Advocates will also offer support to you wherever you are in Massachusetts for up to four hours at a time, multiple days a week. Within the respite homes, a team of Peer Respite Advocates offer 24/7 support and hold a brave space for depth and navigating trauma and/or emotional distress to support people through what is called “crisis” to find healing. For a visit or call from the Mobile Peer Respite Advocates, click here.

 

Advocates

The Living Room program, operated by Advocates in Framingham provides a 24-hour crisis alternative to emergency department visits and hospitalization. Assessments are replaced with a chance to tell your story and what’s happening for you in the moment. Your initial interaction and subsequent conversations, activities, and support is with a peer specialist.

The Living Room is the only program of its kind accessible to people in the MetroWest and Greater Boston areas. For many people in crisis, connecting with a person with shared lived experience can be vital on the journey to mental health recovery.

  • The Living Room offers a welcoming space where people experiencing emotional distress can walk in and connect with a peer specialist on the spot in Framingham. The Living Room creates an experience that is entirely voluntary and focused on respect, mutuality, and trust.

    • The phone number for The Living Room is 508-661-3333. Any adult 18 and older having difficulty with a variety of issues related to emotional distress may visit without a referral.

VA Substance Use Disorder Treatment Programs

The VA provides treatment for substance use problems based on your specific needs, including outpatient counseling and treatment, detoxification programs, residential care, self-help groups, and evidence-based medication treatment to treat substance use disorders or stop tobacco use by relieving physical withdrawal symptoms and cravings. 

  • Click here to learn more about accessing substance use treatment through the VA.

  • Click here to apply for VA health care, or talk to your VA primary care provider to access care.

Despite strong evidence supporting the use of life-saving pharmacotherapy to treat opioid use disorder, there continue to be high levels of stigma surrounding Medication for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD) among both patients and clinicians, particularly perpetuating the idea that patients are “substituting one drug for another,” among many other barriers to care.

  • MOUD is a first-line treatment available to veterans which may also be combined with counseling or therapy for veterans who need it. Buprenorphine is a partial opioid agonist that prevents/relieves opioid withdrawal symptoms and reduces cravings without the high associated with other opioids.

    VA researchers have demonstrated that mortality risk is greater for veterans with opioid use disorder who are not receiving buprenorphine based on the outcomes of all veterans with OUD who received buprenorphine across VA facilities from 2008–2017.

    Veterans who did not have access to buprenorphine were more than four times more likely to die by suicide or overdose compared to those who did––even after accounting for periods where veterans received methadone or naltrexone––and had lower all-cause mortality.

  • It's important for veterans and their family members and caregivers to know what to do in an emergency. When used immediately after an opioid overdose, administration of Naloxone can rapidly reverse the overdose by temporarily blocking the effects of the opioids to prevent death.

Risks Associated with Substance Use

The Massachusetts Injury Surveillance Program publishes data on suicide and overdose deaths within the state. In 2019, there were 90 overdose deaths and 67 suicide deaths among service members and veterans in Massachusetts. Around 59% of veterans who died by overdose had 2–5 different substances and 27% had more than five substances in their systems.

  • Overdose deaths involved opioids (92%), cocaine (47%), and alcohol (37%). Of the veterans who overdosed, 43% had a known mental health condition. There was a bystander present at the time of the overdose 46% of the time. Bystanders with proper training who are carrying Narcan may be able to prevent a fatal overdose. Data after 2019 is not yet available for military and veteran overdose deaths in Massachusetts.

  • Suicide deaths involved alcohol (29%), antidepressants (27%), and opioids (15%). Of the veterans who died by suicide, 52% had a known mental health condition, 30% had a known physical health condition, and 24% had a known alcohol or substance use disorder. With the exception of veterans with a known physical health condition, the proportion of suicides involving these circumstances increased in 2020.

Opioid use increases the risk of fatal and nonfatal overdose and suicide. The Massachusetts Department of Public Health has reported that from 2011–2015, the percentage of veterans with a fatal opioid overdose was three times the state average with veterans being 69% more likely to have a non-fatal opioid overdose and 132% more likely to die from an opioid overdose.

  • If you see someone exhibiting any of these symptoms, dial 911 immediately:

    • Loss of consciousness, limp body

    • Slowed breathing, choking

    • Small, "pinpoint" pupils

    • Pale, blue, or cold skin

    • Slowed heart rate

    A person experiencing an overdose will need someone else to give them Naloxone if it is available. Naloxone should be given to anyone who may be showing signs of an opioid overdose; it has no effect on someone who doesn't have opioids in their system.

  • Researchers further evaluated data from 2011–2015 in 2021 and found that veterans experiencing homelessness in Massachusetts were more likely to be receiving high-dose opioid therapy compared to non-veterans (23% vs. 15%) and had significantly higher odds of overdose.

    VA’s 2023 National Veterans Suicide Report indicated that the plan suicide rate for recent VHA users with indicators of homelessness increased by 38.2% between 2020 and 2021, the highest observed since 2001.

    In 2023, researchers at MGH demonstrated in 2023 that homeless veterans are more likely to receive risky and potentially inappropriate combinations of concurrent benzodiazepines and/or concurrent benzodiazepine and opioid or sedative prescriptions, increasing their risk of overdose.

  • Many medications can be harmful when used with other substances, increasing the risk of serious side effects, overdose, and death. Pain-relief medications are the most frequently used medication in suicide attempts by overdose.

    VA researchers have evaluated the impacts of veterans’ being prescribed multiple central nervous system (CNS) acting medications in multiple populations, noting that increases in the quantities prescribed have coincided with increases in overdoses and suicide-related behaviors. 

    In 2016, VA researchers examined experiences of more than 300,000 OIF/OEF veterans who received VA healthcare between 2009–2011. More than 8% were prescribed five or more CNS-acting drugs in 2011. CNS polypharmacy may independently increase the risk of overdose and suicide-related behavior. VA HSR&D released a Publication Brief about the findings here.

    CNS polypharmacy was independently associated with documented overdose and suicide-related behaviors. OIF/OEF veterans with PTSD, depression, and TBI; women veterans; and veterans between ages 31–50 were more likely to have CNS polypharmacy. Women are also more likely to be inappropriately prescribed benzodiazepines. 

    In 2022, VA researchers evaluated long-term psychoactive medications, polypharmacy, and risk of suicide and unintended overdose death in a national sample of more than 150,000 midlife and older women veterans. Long-term prescribing of psychoactive medications and psychoactive polypharmacy predicted their risk of suicide and/or overdose death above and beyond other factors:

    • Long-term opioids and benzodiazepines were both associated with death by suicide.

    • Opioids, benzodiazepines, sedative-hypnotics, antidepressants, antipsychotics, and antiepileptics were associated with unintended overdose death.

    • Polypharmacy with three or more psychoactive medications was associated with a more than two-fold increased risk of both suicide and unintended overdose death.

    In February 2023, a committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine began a VA-sponsored study to evaluate the effects of opioids and benzodiazepines on all-cause mortality in veterans (including suicide) and quantify the effects of opioid and benzodiazepine prescribing on the risk of death among veterans who received VA care between 2007 and 2019.

Local 12-Step Recovery Meetings

Twelve-step recovery programs meet online and in public settings to guide individuals in their recovery and generally have a general spiritual foundation, encouraging participants to look to a higher power, however they define it. The directory below links to 12-step programs by city/town.

U.S. Department of Health & Human Services

FindTreatment.gov is a confidential and anonymous resource for those seeking treatment for mental and substance use disorders. SAMHSA, the Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration, also offers various Recovery and Recovery Support resources for individuals, families, and service providers.