Counseling Options
Military OneSource offers three kinds of short-term, non-medical counseling options to active-duty, Guard, and Reserve members and their families (eligibility chart).
Military OneSource counseling services are designed to provide service help with short-term issues such as adjustment to situational stressors, stress management, decision making, communication, grief, blended-family issues, and parenting-skills issues.
Your Privacy in Counseling Sessions
Information you provide to counselors will be kept confidential, except to meet legal obligations or to prevent harm to self or others. Legal obligations include requirements of law and DoD or military regulations. Harm to self or others includes suicidal thought or intent, a desire to harm oneself, domestic violence, child abuse or neglect, violence against any person, and any present or future illegal activity. All counseling adheres to the same informed consent, confidentiality, privacy, and reportable-event protocols. A family member may seek counseling without the knowledge or consent of the service member. A Military OneSource consultant can explain the limits of confidentiality in more detail.
Counseling Limitations
Each eligible service member or family member may receive up to 12 sessions, per issue, per counselor at no cost. If you need counseling for a different issue, you must call Military OneSource and speak with a consultant to get another referral for a different counselor. You can see a counselor for a maximum number of 12 sessions.
Those requiring counseling for long-term medical issues will be referred to TRICARE or a military treatment facility.
Duty-to-Warn
Military OneSource has the technology, the procedural infrastructure, and the highly trained staff to ensure that each user is treated confidentially and with respect regardless of rank. However, there are exceptions. Military OneSource consultants have a duty to report family maltreatment (spouse, child, elder abuse), threats of harm to self or others, substance abuse, and illegal activities. These reports are made to the appropriate military and civilian authorities. Since counselors are an extension of Military OneSource, these reporting requirements apply to them as well.