Austin Vet Center
Your Vet Center counselor can connect you to either in-patient or out-patient substance abuse treatment in the community, such as at the Olin E. Teague Veterans' Center or another community partner.
Our Vet Center provides marriage, couples, and family counseling to eligible service members and their families that may experience readjustment and relational distress following redeployment, military relocation, retirement, or incidents of infidelity, and much more.
LMFTs and additionally trained staff support members through talk therapy and evidence-based practices (EBPs) which include, but are not limited to;
- Cognitive-Behavioral Couples Therapy
- Integrative Behavioral Couples Therapy
- Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy
- The Gottman Method
Reach out to the Austin Vet Center if you or your organization would like to learn more about VA Benefits and Services, Veteran culture, and how we can collaborate to support the Veteran community.
We can provide individual or group educational briefings, exhibit at your organizations' events, and establish clinical partnerships with your organizations.
We work closely with various Veteran Service Offices in several counties, that work at no charge, to help Veterans and service members apply for local, state, and federal benefits.
The Austin Vet Center partners with organizations like:
- Veteran Service Organizations, community leaders, and elected representatives
- Military installations and units, including the National Guard and Reserve
- Businesses, non-profit organizations, educational institutions, and industries
- Health care systems and providers, members of the clergy, government agencies, and many more
The Austin Vet Center partners with the Austin Outpatient Clinic and other community organizations to bring awareness about VA S.A.V.E. This training will help you act with care and compassion if you encounter a Veteran or service member who is in crisis or experiencing suicidal thoughts. If you are interested in receiving this free training for yourself or your organization please contact the Austin Vet Center staff at 512-416-1314.
Our Vet Center provides grief and bereavement services to immediate family members which include:
- The families of Veterans and service members who were receiving Vet Center services at the time of the Veteran's death
- The families (including parents or caregivers) of service members who died while serving on active duty
Staff counselors utilize active listening, compassion, and empathy coupled with elements of the Grief Recovery Method. Our staff will support members through providing skills and tools to improve concentration and focus, improve disrupted sleep patterns, manage the “roller coaster of emotions”, and much more.
We can also connect you to the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) and the National Cemetery Administration (NCA) for assistance with burial and survivor services.
At the Austin Vet Center, we offer individual and group counseling. We also provide referral services to appropriate resources in our community.
Care at our center includes:
- One-on-one hour-long counseling sessions targeted at your individual needs
- Group counseling for Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans, Desert Strom Veterans, Vietnam Veterans, Spouses/Significant Others, service members and more
We offer evidence-based therapies such as:
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I)
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT)
- Prolonged Exposure Therapy (PE)
The Austin Vet Center provides a safe and comfortable, environment for services where both male and female counselors can help.
At the Austin Vet Center, we offer individual and group counseling.
Care at our Center includes:
- Anger management
- Stress management
- Emotional regulation
Evidence-based therapies such as:
- Eye Movement Rapid Response (EMDR)
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I)
- Integrative Behavioral Couples Therapy (IBCT)
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT)
- Prolonged Exposure Therapy (PE)
- Web Skills Training in Affective and Interpersonal Regulation (webStair)
You and your counselor can determine if group work may be beneficial to your progress.
The staff is also trained to provide VA S.A.V.E. Training that will help you act with care and compassion if you encounter a Veteran or service member who is in crisis or experiencing suicidal thoughts. The acronym S.A.V.E. helps you remember the important steps involved in suicide prevention.
S- Signs of suicidal thinking should be recognized
A- Ask the most important questions of all - " Are you thinking of killing yourself"
V- Validate the Veteran's experience
E- Encourage treatment and expedite getting help
If you are interested in receiving this free training for yourself or your organization please contact the Austin Vet Center staff at 512-416-1314.
Austin Vet Center can help you:
- Understand VA medical benefits and provide guidance on documents needed for enrollment.
- Find a VSO to file claims and other benefits paperwork.
- Connect you to representatives for VA education benefits.
- Find a point of contact for VA and state burial benefits.
- Learn more about housing and VA home loans.
We typically offer workshops and other classes. However, due to COVID-19, most of the workshops are on hold unless they can be conducted virtually.
- Stained glass workshops: Each workshop has 6 sessions starting on Mondays from 2:00 to 2:30 p.m. Please call to find out which stage the workshop is in and how you can get started.
- knitting class (coming soon)
- woodworking workshop (coming soon)
Austin Vet Center counseling services are also available through both online and by telephone. Your counselor can assist you if this is a good option.
Austin Vet Center offers individual and group sessions for certain areas of care. You and your counselor can determine if our Women's Veteran Counseling (Individual or group setting) or other group work may be beneficial to your progress.
The link below will help you find available Women Veteran Health Care services and resources to include additional counseling services.
Learn more at Women Veterans Health Care Home - Veterans Affairs.
Women Veterans Call Center (WVCC) at 855-829-6636
The Austin Vet Center hosts and participates in Veteran- Centered activities and outings that facilitate connection, camaraderie and community such as:
- Open Houses
- Family Funday at Zilker Park
- Holiday parties
- Sporting events
How we're different than a clinic (FAQs)
How we’re different than a clinic
What are Vet Centers?
Vet Centers are small, non-medical, counseling centers conveniently located in your community. They’re staffed by highly trained counselors and team members dedicated to seeing you through the challenges that come with managing life during and after the military.
Whether you come in for one-on-one counseling or to participate in a group session, at Vet Centers you can form social connections, try new things, and build a support system with people who understand you and want to help you succeed.
Who is eligible to receive services at Vet Centers?
Vet Center services are available to you at no cost, regardless of discharge character, and without you needing to be enrolled in VA health care or having a service-connected disability. If you’re a Veteran or service member, including members of the National Guard and Reserve, you can access our services if you:
- Served on active military duty in any combat theater or area of hostility
- Experienced military sexual trauma (regardless of gender or service era)
- Provided mortuary services or direct emergent medical care to treat the casualties of war while serving on active military duty
- Performed as a member of an unmanned aerial vehicle crew that provided direct support to operations in a combat theater or area of hostility
- Accessed care at a Vet Center prior to January 2, 2013, as a Vietnam-Era Veteran
- Served on active military duty in response to a national emergency or major disaster declared by the president, or under orders of the governor or chief executive of a state in response to a disaster or civil disorder in that state.
- Are a current or former member of the Coast Guard who participated in a drug interdiction operation, regardless of the location.
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Are a current member of the Reserve Components assigned to a military command in a drilling status, including active Reserves, who has a behavioral health condition or psychological trauma related to military service that adversely effects quality of life or adjustment to civilian life.
We encourage you to contact us, even if you’re unsure if you meet these criteria. If we can’t help you, we’ll find someone who will.
Our services are also available to family members when their participation would support the growth and goals of the Veteran or active-duty service member. If you consider them family, so do we. We also offer bereavement services to family members of Veterans who were receiving Vet Center services at the time of the Veteran’s death, and to the families of service members who died while serving on active duty.
Do I have to be enrolled in VA health care to access Vet Center services?
No. You don’t have to be enrolled in VA health care or have a service-connected disability.
What about my privacy?
Safe and confidential. Our records can’t be accessed by other VA offices, the DoD, military units, or other community networks and providers without your permission or unless required to avert a life-threatening situation. Here, you can be as open as you want—there’s absolutely no judgment.