In South Dakota, calls, texts and chats to 988 go to trained counselors at the Helpline Center, which works with the state Department of Social Services, and you don't have to be in crisis to reach out. The publicly funded mental health system is overseen by the Division of Behavioral Health within the Department of Social Services, which contracts with 11 community mental health centers around the state. NAMI South Dakota, the former state NAMI organization, has closed, but NAMI Brookings is still listed as a local affiliate and NAMI runs online support groups open to anyone.
The state runs its own help site, SDBehavioralHealth.gov, with maps of community mental health centers and short term crisis care centers.
South Dakota's 11 publicly funded community mental health centers each cover a set group of counties, from Sioux Falls and Rapid City to smaller towns like Lemmon and Winner, and the state says they can provide services by telehealth. For a crisis that needs more than a phone call, short term crisis care centers in Yankton, Mitchell, Rapid City and Watertown offer overnight stabilization closer to home. The state psychiatric hospital, the Human Services Center, is in Yankton. The University of South Dakota's psychiatry residency is based in Sioux Falls, and USD says its residents also work at outreach sites around the region. Farmers, ranchers and their families can get free counseling sessions through an SDSU Extension voucher program.
Crisis lines
- 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Call or text 988 anywhere in the United States, including from South Dakota. Free and confidential, 24 hours a day. For chat, visit 988lifeline.org.
- 988 in South Dakota (SD Behavioral Health). The state's 988 page explains that South Dakota contacts go to local counselors at the Helpline Center, for any emotional concern and not only a crisis. Press 1 for veteran support or 2 for Spanish, or text AYUDA to 988.
- Helpline Center 988 Lifeline. The Sioux Falls nonprofit that answers 988 for South Dakota in collaboration with the Department of Social Services. Its site also has a searchable list of mental health and substance use resources.
- South Dakota 211 Helpline. Dial 211, or text your ZIP code to 898211, to find local help with health care, food, housing and other needs. The Helpline Center says trained specialists are available 24 hours a day.
Crisis care and mobile crisis
- Short Term Crisis Care Centers. State listed centers that provide overnight stabilization for mental health or substance use crises 24 hours a day: CORE Center in Yankton (605-665-4606), Dakota Counseling Institute in Mitchell (605-996-9686), Pivot Point in Rapid City (605-343-7262) and Serenity Cove in Watertown (605-886-0650).
- Human Services Center (state psychiatric hospital). South Dakota's state psychiatric hospital in Yankton, with inpatient programs for adults and for youth ages 12 to 17. The admissions office is at 605-668-3138.
State mental health authority
- Division of Behavioral Health, South Dakota Department of Social Services. The division oversees the publicly funded behavioral health system for people of all ages, including treatment, recovery, prevention and crisis services. Call 605.367.5236 or email [email protected].
- SD Behavioral Health. The division's public help site, with pages on mental health treatment, suicide prevention, crisis services and recovery. Start here if you're not sure what kind of help you need.
NAMI in South Dakota
NAMI South Dakota, the state organization, has closed and its support groups are canceled. NAMI's national online support groups remain open to South Dakotans.
- NAMI Brookings. A local NAMI affiliate serving Brookings, listed on NAMI's national site with phone 605-692-8948. Call ahead, since the listing showed no South Dakota programs currently scheduled.
Community mental health centers
- Community mental health center map (SD Behavioral Health). A map and list of the 11 publicly funded community mental health centers, with phone numbers and the counties each one serves. Services range from short term counseling to outpatient care with case management and psychiatric medication monitoring.
Treatment locators
- FindTreatment.gov. SAMHSA's free, confidential search tool for mental health and substance use treatment. Filter by location, type of care and payment options.
- Helpline Center 211 resource search. An online directory of more than 6,000 South Dakota resources that you can search yourself. It includes counseling and health services as well as basic needs.
University and academic medical centers
- Department of Psychiatry, USD Sanford School of Medicine. The University of South Dakota's psychiatry department, based at the Avera Behavioral Health Center, 4400 W. 69th St. in Sioux Falls. Call 605-322-5735.
- USD Psychiatry Residency Program. South Dakota's psychiatry residency, which trains in outpatient, inpatient, child and adolescent, and telepsychiatry settings. USD also runs a child and adolescent psychiatry fellowship.
Other state programs
- South Dakota Suicide Prevention. A multi agency state site with help for people having thoughts of suicide, a safety plan tool, and free training like QPR and Mental Health First Aid. It also has pages for farmers and ranchers, veterans, American Indians and young people.
- Agriculture Behavioral Health Voucher Program (SDSU Extension). Farmers, ranchers, agribusiness professionals and their immediate families can get up to five free counseling sessions at Rising Hope Counseling. Fill out the form on the page or call Rising Hope at 605-494-1500.