Look to the Employee Assistance Program for Mental and Emotional Health Support

When too much stress enters our lives at once, it can impact our mental and emotional health - especially if we don't have adequate support to deal with the causes of that stress.

The Employee Assistance Program (EAP)* provides support, consultation, and personalized assistance, as well as referrals to licensed counselors and professional resources in your community. It's free and confidential. And it offers active members and members of their household up to six free, private counseling sessions (per issue) with a licensed provider.

This service, provided by CIGNA Behavioral Health, can also help relieve some of life's pressures, by offering access to financial expertise, legal assistance, tax help, child care, and elder care.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, mental disorders are common in the United States. About one in four adults suffers from a diagnosable mental disorder in any given year.

Anxiety disorders are the most common mental disorder in the U.S., affecting 40 million adults in the United States, or about 18 percent of the population. The line between normal feelings of nerves or sadness and a diagnosable mental illness is often not clear. Talking about such feelings with a professional is one way to determine if treatment is appropriate.

EAP Covers a Variety of Needs

The state of your emotional and mental health has a big impact on your overall well-being. That's why the EAP makes available to you resources for effectively coping with stress, depression, and grief. If and when it comes to the important decision of selecting a mental health provider, the EAP is able to provide a referral.

Sometimes instead of seeking help, people resort to counterproductive coping methods, such as developing substance dependencies. Substance abuse can compound an individual's life challenges because of its negative effects on the person's health, behaviors, relationships, and more.

But help in dealing with alcohol and drug-related issues is only a phone call away, using the resources and referral services of the EAP.

The Employee Assistance Program is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, by calling 1-866-640-2772. Or access it online by going to www.cignabehavioral.com. Click on "Login to access your benefits" in the upper left-hand menu. Then scroll down until you see the "Employer ID" field on the left. Enter for the Employer ID: pcusa (in lowercase letters with no spaces).** Then click "Go."

* Not available to individuals on Medicare Supplement.
** Members with coverage under the Anthem Blue Preferred HMO, please enter for the Employer ID: anthem (in lowercase letters).