St. Clair County Community Mental Health (SCCCMH) has launched a partnership with Talkspace, an online therapy provider. This partnership has been developed through funding made available through the City of Port Huron and SCCCMH funding.

Talkspace: Self-Guided is a mobile application being made available to all St. Clair County residents through this partnership. This tool is designed to empower individuals, parents, and couples to take progress into their own hands. Based on research studies, the clinically-supported programs available through Talkspace: Self-Guided utilize the most effective therapeutic approaches for anxiety, depression, burnout, and parenting.

Through the app, users can benefit from mental health support in as little as five minutes a day. To begin, individuals complete a brief 25-question assessment that is designed to get to the root of their mental, emotional, and relational health. Based on the responses, users receive a personalized plan drawn from the Talkspace library of more than 55 guided counseling programs.

Features of the application include more than 400 self-guided and interactive courses, workshops and classes, and daily journaling and reflection prompts. Based on your individualized plan, there are a series of topics that users can work through in their own time. Live classes are offered multiple times throughout the week, covering a broad variety of topics. The live sessions are also made available in a recorded format for those who have registered but weren’t able to attend the workshop during the live broadcast.

The range of topics is broad enough to support many mental health goals, from navigating depression and anxiety to improving your relationships – from work, personal, and parenting. A sample of topics includes: mental health foundations, parenting foundations, postpartum depression, work stress, device addiction, couples communication, healthy dating, emotional intelligence, and burnout.

Included in the app are meditation tools including resources to help you with difficult conversations, breathing, cooling off, and more. The daily journaling prompts are recorded privately and securely in the user’s app.



“Building a toolkit of mental health skills may help with improving relationships and reducing mental health stressors many of us face, such as anxiety,” says Kristen Thompson, LMSW, Assistant Division Director at St. Clair County Community Mental Health. “There is also a direct correlation between physical health and mental health. Good mental health can positively affect your physical. This app and building these skills has the potential to go far beyond your mental health!”

Talkspace: Self-Guided is not intended to replace formal mental health treatment or therapy. However, it is a tool for individuals to use to support their mental health. Maintaining good mental health is important for everyone and allows individuals to determine how they handle stress, relate to others, make healthy choices, and cope better during difficult times in our personal and professional lives. Additionally, the benefits of improving your mental health can have positive impacts on your physical health.

“Using the Talkspace: Self-Guided app gives St. Clair County residents the opportunity to spend the year navigating their personal mental health on their terms, in their own time, and in a private setting,” says Deb Johnson, SCCCMH Chief Executive Officer. “The ability to choose topics that are important to you, and move around as different concerns develop is also critical to developing the skills to propel your mental health forward.”

To access a free one-year subscription to Talkspace: Self-Guided, simply search for Talkspace: Self-Guided in your app store. Download the app to your mobile device and create an account. You can find the organization code for your free one-year membership on the SCCCMH website under the Education & Outreach tab. Your one-year access begins after creating your account.

“We are so excited about this partnership with the City of Port Huron to be able to provide this support to people in our community,” says Karen Zultak, Special Projects Supervisor for St. Clair County Community Mental Health. “Making resources like this readily available is a key component in our ongoing efforts to promote a healthy and happy St. Clair County, and this app is a valuable tool to help support people in this journey.”

For more information on SCCCMH’s partnership with Talkspace, visit scccmh.org/talkspace. To access community mental health support and services, contact SCCCMH’s Access Line at 888-225-4447. If you are experiencing a mental health crisis, the Mobile Crisis Unit is available to assist 24 hours a day, seven days a week, call at 810-966-2575. For more information about programs and services, visit SCCCMH online at scccmh.org.