COVID-19 may be waning, but The Lindner Center of HOPE is still seeing an increased demand for its services

Since the state closed down in March 2020 due to COVID-19, things haven’t been the same. 

With vaccinations increasing and health orders ending, there has been a glimmer of hope, but that doesn’t mean the events of the past year and a half haven’t had a significant impact on people and their mental health. 

Dr. Amanda Porter and the team at the Lindner Center of HOPE are still seeing the effects the pandemic has had with a continued increase in the demand for mental health services. 

Porter, who is a psychiatric nurse practitioner and integrative mental health practitioner, works in the Lindner Center of HOPE’s Outpatient Services and says that, unfortunately, business is booming.

“At Lindner in particular, I feel that we’ve seen an increased demand in services across the board—inpatient, outpatient and residential as well as our Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP).”

Porter and the entire staff at the Lindner Center for HOPE have seen a revolving door of challenges in the last year. She says that one of her most difficult challenges since the onset of COVID-19 has been the transition to telehealth.

“My biggest assessment tools are observation and interview,” she explains. “I engage all my senses and read body language and facial expressions to help me evaluate a person’s thoughts and emotional state. Telehealth makes it challenging for me to do my job, but our systems are getting better each day.”

And in a post-COVID world, Porter says that she sees a continuation with the use of electronic and telehealth services, something she believes will increase the accessibility of care to those who are the most vulnerable.

Additionally, she says that she sees businesses making mental wellness a higher priority to their employees. Accessibility to care and an increased awareness of the importance of caring for mental health are important as the stigma around mental health changes. 

Porter reminds others that even if they’re struggling with mental health issues and need to seek treatment, they’re worthy of help, joy and wellness.

“Don’t let anyone, including yourself, talk you out of that fact,” she adds.

And as she works to change the stigma on mental health treatment and remind people how much they deserve to enjoy life, she will continue to share her own struggles with clients.

“I recently shared on my social media platforms how challenging this past year or so has been for me, and the toll it’s taken on my own mental health,” she says. “I am in therapy. I am taking medication. No one is safe from mental health struggles, including mental health professionals.”

Porter believes in sharing that vulnerability and authenticity with patients and will continue to do so as the world navigates this once-in-a-lifetime experience and comes out on the other side.