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Mental & Emotional Health

You and your family have access to mental and emotional health care, as well as substance abuse care, through the university's Faculty Staff Help Center and other benefits.

Faculty Staff Help Center 

The Stanford Faculty Staff Help Center (FSHC) provides professional, confidential short-term counseling services for you and your family, up to 10 sessions, based on need. An assessment is conducted on the first visit to ensure that the FSHC is the correct resource for your issue(s). If you need more support than the FSHC can offer, the center will provide a referral to other services. FSHC is free to Stanford employees, retirees, and eligible dependents up to age 26.

The FSHC provides assistance with:

  • Work issues
  • Personal issues
  • Substance abuse
  • Career development

Serving the community: FSHC has locations at Stanford Campus, SLAC, and Stanford Redwood City. To make an appointment or get more information, visit helpcenter.stanford.edu.

SupportLinc: Employee Assistance Program for out-of-state employees

Stanford has partnered with an employee assistance program, SupportLinc, to provide employees living outside of California with services similar to the Faculty Staff Help Center. This is a confidential resource that helps you deal with life’s challenges and the demands that come with balancing home and work. SupportLinc provides confidential, professional referrals and up to ten (10) sessions of face-to-face counseling sessions for a wide variety of concerns, such as: 

  • Anxiety
  • Depression
  • Marriage and Relationship Problems
  • Grief and Loss
  • Substance Abuse
  • Anger Management
  • Stress
  • Financial Assistance
  • Legal Assistance
  • Family Assistance

To get started, visit SupportLinc.com or download the mobile application and click on “Create Account” and enter the group code “stanfordremote”

Questions? Call 1-888-881-LINC (5462)

SupportLinc Suicide Prevention Flyer

Meru Health: Free online mental wellness program for adults

Meru Health is a 12-week online program that will help you take steps to improve your mental well-being. The program is available for free to benefits-eligible employees and their adult dependents who are enrolled in a university medical plan, and is currently available to participants nationwide.

Meru Health offers you access to:

  • Licensed therapists and psychiatrists
  • Anonymous peer support
  • A biofeedback device
  • Mindfulness practices
  • Habit-changing activities for sleep, nutrition and more

You can access the program from your mobile device, allowing customized access, any time and anywhere. The program is HIPAA compliant and the information provided to Meru Health will be kept confidential.

You can voluntarily enroll in this program at any time. 

Register for Meru Health

Brightline: Child and adolescent mental health support

Brightline announced to Stanford effective October 2024 that they were changing their service model and moving away from a virtual-only, national care model. Their new focus will be a hybrid in-person and virtual model in a few specific markets, greatly reducing their current availability. California is not one of the select markets, and as a result, Brightline ended the direct vendor relationship with the university. California families can access clinical services for children aged 0-12 through BrightLifeKids directly via the state, rather than through your health insurance. If you're in California and already have a Brightline account, you automatically have free access to coaching with BrightLife Kids through your existing account. If you do not have an existing account, you can sign up or call member support at 888-275-5357. For more information, visit www.hellobrightline.com/brightlifekids.

Seek help through your medical plan

Mental health coverage is essential to you and your family’s overall wellness. Here is an explanation of how these services are covered by each plan, as well as other resources available to you.