San Diego Vet Center
We offer individual and group counseling. We also provide referral to VA counseling resources and therapy resources in your community. Care at our center includes:
- Evidence-based therapies, including Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
- Skills-based treatments for mastery of readjustment symptoms
Examples of evidence-based therapies, include:
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
We can also help manage related symptoms such anger and insomnia.
San Diego Vet Center recognizes the devastating effects of military sexual trauma and is there as an expert ally providing trauma-informed and trauma-focused care as part of your readjustment and recovery journey, and can be there as an advocate helping navigate systems of care and benefits.
San Diego Vet Center offers counseling and other support, such as:
- Bereavement counseling for families who have lost a loved one during active duty
- Counseling for complicated grief reactions
A core service at the Vet Center is relationship counseling and family therapy. The demanding nature of military life and inherent prolonged absence, let alone the uniqueness of combat service and other experiences, can undermine relationships. Our team of counselors can help you reinforce your relationships.
We can also make referrals to programs through the larger VA such as "Warrior to Soul Mate (W2SM) / PAIRS Communication" which is a couples counseling program that is offered at the La Jolla VAMC.
Learn more about the Warrior to Soul Mate program.
We understand that the transition from military to civilian life can be a challenge. We offer a variety of ways to assist you in that process such as:
- How to get VA medical benefits and register for care
- Where to go to file claims and other forms
- Understanding your VA education benefits
- Housing and home loans
- Education and referral for VA burial benefits
We can also connect you to Veterans Service Organizations in our community.
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.