Virtual Therapy South Dakota

Accessible Virtual Therapy for South Dakota Residents

The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) reports that about 166,000 South Dakota residents struggle with a mental health condition, including chronic stress, ,anxiety, and depression. This number is more than 11-times the population of Pierre, the state’s eleventh most populated city. Of added concern, is that about 43,000 South Dakota adults have a serious mental illness, one-in-six of SD youth between the ages of 12-17 experience a major depressive episode each year. Without intervention, the state is headed for an especially troubling future when considering that 650,000 South Dakota residents live in a community that does not have enough mental health professionals. That’s over 70% of the entire population, making SD one of the United States’ officially designated Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs). 

“Over 70% of ‘South Dakota‘s population lives in a community without adequate access to mental health support”

What contributes to its HPSA status? South Dakota faces a mental health professional shortage mainly due to its predominantly rural population, making it hard to attract providers to underserved areas, coupled with issues like underfunding at a state and federal level and challenges in provider retention. In response, Kindbridge Behavioral Health has stepped in. We have opened our virtual doors to “The Mount Rushmore State” with specialized counselors on standby to receive new clients.

Using Technology to Overcome Tech Addictions

Despite the rural nature of the region, technology addiction is one of the fastest growing threats to public health in South Dakota. Problematic behavior regarding engagement with internet-enabled activities has compromised the wellbeing of vulnerable residents. These issues include the following:

• Problematic online gambling behavior: Recent surveys find that South Dakota ranks as the 2nd most gambling-addicted state in the USA, with some of the most casinos and gaming machines per capita.
• Problematic use of pornography: As with problem gambling (above) National studies suggest that up to 7% of adults meet the criteria for problematic gambling behavior, which equates 64,400 SD residents.
• Problematic online trading behavior: National studies suggest that 8% of investors meet the criteria for compulsivity regarding online trading.
• Unhealthy video gaming: National studies suggest around 3-5% of gamers experience issues with unhealthy gaming.
• Problematic online shopping behavior: National studies suggest that up to 16% of Americans struggle with unhealthy online shopping behavior. It’s estimated that 148,000 South Dakotans may be affected, assuming the state mirrors national averages. 

As a virtual counseling platform, Kindbridge leverages technology to treat all of the above. Counseling specific to each issue are available to any South Dakota resident with a smartphone, tablet, or laptop (everyone). Click or call to connect right now.

Successfully Treating Cooccurring Issues

A number of mental health concerns are comorbid with technology addictions. Whether you struggle with one or more of these as cooccurring (w/ problem tech use) issues or they are standalone concerns, we will help.

Anxiety	ADHD
Bipolar Disorder	Chronic Anger + Irritability
Depression	OCD
PTSD	Substance Use Disorder