This summer will mark the official launch of Innovia Behavioral Health, which is a project that has been in the works for a full year and has gone through many evolutions up to this point. The company is now a true reflection of what I have learned working in this field for the past 22 years as well as what I feel most passionate about. It is an effort to bring help to a much larger section of the general population, rather than only those people with more acute situations requiring treatment for a diagnosis.
Innovia is a subscription-based behavioral health maintenance organization. Our subscribers get access to as many available groups as they would like to attend, an individual session with one of our practitioners each month, and weekly check-ins with our support personnel. These groups vary from educational to skills-based and support to instructional, on topics that address stress points for everyday people to help them (us) lead healthier, happier lives. Our group facilitators and practitioners range from those with doctoral degrees to licensed therapists, and from counselors and coaches to peer support specialists. We do not provide treatment and are not competing with any treatment facility.
The reality is that we all have stressful situations in our lives that come and go, and sometimes they are more difficult or severe than others. We all could use a little help or guidance from experts in their fields that don’t have an emotional attachment to our unique situations.
Mental health is a state that we all have, and the words should not have negative connotation. Our mental health is sometimes in a wonderful state, and sometimes not so great. Other times we might be really hurting. It is part of living. Paying attention to our mental health as part of our overall health is the first way to start improving it and to feel better more often.
Our goal is to provide help and support for people as they navigate life, both as a preventative measure to build resiliency and avoid greater difficulty as well as maintenance to avoid backsliding into more serious problems.
Someone could receive help or guidance on a specific topic from one month to the next, or multiple areas each month, whether that is help with relationships or break-ups, substance use, anxiety, grief, goal setting, nutrition, or many other areas.
Our motto is simply, Feel. Better. ™
Having worked in and with many treatment facilities of all kinds and levels of care over the years, including multiple startups, a few things continue to frustrate me with the industry. One of the biggest problems is the relationship with insurance companies and how so much of the care is dictated by what individual policies will pay for, and how difficult it can be for treatment centers to get paid for providing care to patients or clients, regardless of the quality of services. Then, when people aren’t “bad enough” to fit a certain diagnosis or symptom severity, insurance will no longer pay for many of the services.
There are also many private practice therapists out there, which are absolutely wonderful. However, finding ones that match up with your insurance carrier and/or one that is affordable and available when you are can sometimes be difficult. Plus, there may be times where someone needs to see more than one therapist because of different areas of specialty. Other times you might not need a licensed therapist and a coach would be more helpful for your situation, yet insurance won’t cover it.
Additionally, many of the one-on-one support services, such as some of the large digital providers (BetterHelp, TalkSpace, Cerebral, etc.), don’t offer in-person services and don’t offer groups. They also happen to be more expensive. We feel that human connection is essential, and that allowing for in-person options and to attend groups are crucial to providing a broader foundational support to help people feel better and do better in life.
Affordability and Accessibility
Many people shy away from help because of the stigma that they feel others might see them as “weak” or that something is wrong with them. Neither of these are the case, though, especially given the huge amount of stress most of us have experienced over the past couple of years with the pandemic. Receiving help, guidance and support is now much more openly talked about and encouraged. For Innovia as well, our practitioners cover such a wide range of topics and stress points in life, and have different backgrounds, which is also different than receiving treatment somewhere that requires a diagnosis.
The subscription fee is only $199 per month. That gives access to as many groups as someone would like to attend, a monthly individual session with one of our practitioners, weekly check-ins with support personnel, and a growing library of resources that includes videos, lessons, guides and more.
From groups to individualized care, connection and support, to introduction of products and services, we truly do aim to help people lead healthier, happier lives.
We are building a community. Innovia is changing the way people view their mental health, for the better.