Kauai Vet Center
We understand the benefits found in including family members in treatment and are honored to be able to support the Veteran’s readjustment with these additional services.
Bereavement counseling is assistance and support to people with emotional and psychological stress after the death of a loved one.
Our Vet Center offers bereavement counseling to any family members of Armed Forces personnel who died in the service of their country. Also eligible are family members of Reservists and National Guardsmen who died while on duty.
At the Kauai Vet Center, we offer individual and group counseling. These counseling services can be conducted in-person, by phone, or virtually. We also provide referral services to appropriate resources in our community.
The Kauai Vet Center offers the following groups:
- PTSD Management — Learn skills to cope with symptoms related to post-traumatic stress in a supportive environment
- Anger Management — Learn coping strategies to help manage anger
- Spouses Support — Support group for spouses of Combat Veterans. Members learn about PTSD, how it impacts relationships, and how to cope effectively.
If you think you might have PTSD, there are resources to help you recover. Even if your symptoms come and go — or surfaced months or years after the traumatic event — effective treatments are available. Call us at 808-246-1163 to learn about PTSD, treatment options, self-help tools, and more. Individual and group counseling, such as the PTSD Management group, are available to help you learn how to cope well.
The unparalleled natural beauty of our island provides great opportunities to connect with nature - and other Veterans - to heal.
Kauai Vet Center offers therapeutic activities such as:
- Hiking
- Mindfulness
- Tai Chi/Qi Gong
- Surfing
- Standup Paddling (SUP)
- Golf
For instance, we can connect you with a VBA representative or our local VSO to educate and assist you in obtaining:
- VA medical benefits
- Education benefits
- Military-related disability compensation
- Home loan
- Burial benefits
We may also connect you with our Kauai Community College (KCC) Student Support Counselor and local Veteran Service Organizations.
We are happy to discuss the appropriateness and availability of Telehealth services to support your readjustment goals.
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.