In Connecticut, adult public mental health care is run by the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS), which operates or funds local mental health authorities throughout the state. Call or text 988 and you'll reach the Connecticut 988 Contact Center run by United Way of Connecticut 211, or call the adult ACTION Line at 1-800-467-3135 to be connected to a mobile crisis team. NAMI Connecticut, based in New Britain, runs free support groups and classes around the state.
Connecticut routes crisis calls through one front door: 988, 211 (press 1 for crisis), and the ACTION Line all reach trained staff at United Way of Connecticut, who can send a youth or adult mobile crisis team to you.
DMHAS divides the state into five service regions, and its town finder shows which region covers each town. Each region has local mental health authorities, some state operated and some private nonprofits, in places such as Bridgeport, Stamford, New Haven, Middletown, Norwich, Dayville, Hartford, Waterbury, Danbury, and Torrington. DMHAS mobile crisis teams, mostly based in that network, serve every adult 18 and older in the state, and the ACTION Line covers them after hours. Academic psychiatry is centered in New Haven, where the Connecticut Mental Health Center is run jointly by DMHAS and the Yale Department of Psychiatry, and in Farmington at UConn Health.
Crisis lines
- 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Call or text 988 anywhere in the United States, including from Connecticut. Free and confidential, 24 hours a day. For chat, visit 988lifeline.org.
- 988 and crisis services in Connecticut (Prevent Suicide CT). Explains how 988 works in Connecticut and when to ask for a mobile crisis team instead of calling 911. You can also call 211 and press 1 for crisis, then 1 for children or 2 for adults.
- ACTION Line for adults. Call 1-800-467-3135 (1-800-HOPE-135) at any hour if you're an adult in emotional distress or a substance use crisis. Staff at 211 offer phone support and referrals and can connect you to your area's mobile crisis team.
- 211 Connecticut. Dial 211 or 1-800-203-1234 for free referrals to local services, or search the 211 database online. It's run by United Way of Connecticut with support from the state.
- DMHAS peer support warm lines. A list of statewide warm lines answered by people with lived experience, such as the REACH Warmline (1-866-927-6225) and Safe Harbor Warm Line (1-800-258-1528). These aren't crisis lines, and each has its own evening hours.
Crisis care and mobile crisis
- DMHAS crisis services and adult mobile crisis. DMHAS mobile crisis teams serve all Connecticut adults 18 and older, offering assessment, crisis intervention, safety planning, and follow up. The page also covers the REST Center in New Haven and The Gloria House peer respite in New Britain.
- Mobile Crisis Intervention Services for youth. For children and teens in crisis, dial 211 and press 1 to reach counselors who can send a mobile crisis team. The program is funded by the Department of Children and Families and also lists walk in Urgent Crisis Centers for kids.
State mental health authority
- Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services. The state agency for adult mental health and addiction services, with links to crisis help, warm lines, and regional directories. Call 860-418-7000; for 24 hour access to substance use treatment, call the Access Line at 1-800-563-4086.
- HUSKY Health. Connecticut's Medicaid and CHIP program for eligible children and adults. The page explains who qualifies, how to apply, and links to behavioral health benefit information.
NAMI Connecticut
- NAMI Connecticut. The state NAMI organization in New Britain, with local affiliates around Connecticut. It offers free classes such as NAMI Basics, Family-to-Family, and Peer-to-Peer; call or text the office at 860-882-0236 (not a crisis line).
- NAMI Connecticut support groups. Groups led by peers include NAMI Connection for adults with mental health conditions, Family Support Groups, a young adult group for ages 18 to 29, and a group for parents of children with symptoms. Check the calendar for times, towns, and virtual options.
Community mental health centers
- Local Mental Health Authorities (DMHAS). Lists each local mental health authority by region with its address, phone number, crisis number where listed, and the towns it serves. Start here to find the public mental health center for your town.
Treatment locators
- DMHAS finding services town finder. Look up your town alphabetically to see which of the five DMHAS regions serves it, then open that region's list of services. It also links to crisis services and service locators.
- FindTreatment.gov. The federal SAMHSA locator for mental health and substance use treatment. Search by ZIP code and filter by payment type.
University and academic medical centers
- Connecticut Mental Health Center (DMHAS and Yale). A New Haven center run jointly by DMHAS and the Yale School of Medicine Department of Psychiatry since 1966. No one is turned away for inability to pay; call (203) 974-7300.
- Yale Medicine Psychiatry. Yale's psychiatry department offers psychotherapy, medication treatment, and advanced depression treatment, with programs at Connecticut Mental Health Center, Yale New Haven Psychiatric Hospital, and VA Connecticut.
- UConn Health Adult Psychiatric Outpatient Services. An outpatient clinic in Farmington offering medication management and individual, family, and group therapy for adults. For now, referrals must come from UConn Health physicians; the clinic number is 860-679-6700.