“The quality beats other services. High quality services. The charging, is ridiculous. I get charge for 4? Sessions with a therapist, I don’t actually know because it’s standard and not based on availability. I’ve considered going elsewhere, but have stayed based on quality, but why should I pay for 4 sessions a month if I can only get 1-2 a month? What I pay for varies month to month, seems like an unrealistic model.”
“I feel the medication is working and videos are good. My therapist has canceled 3 of our appointments and I've had three sessions I missed because of phone issues. I'm not tech savvy whatsoever but I'll hang in there. Thanks.”
“I'm happy with my provider psychiatrist, but am disappointed that I have to pay$95 a month for her to prescribe my medication.
My insurance company covers a 3 month supply for my medication, and my doctor is very helpful and willing to give me that amount.
I think this is unfair to the patient”
“The service is good and helpful overall. The providers I have seen have been all very good to excellent. But it seems that Brightside is designed mainly for people with chronic, daily struggles such as severe depression or other major issues. I have only mild anxiety and perhaps a slight touch of depression and am on venlafaxine - which I consider to be a "maintenance drug" no different than what one would take for high cholesterol or blood pressure. I don't think about those conditions daily and don't want to think about my mild anxiety daily either - or weekly or monthly for that matter. My mental health does not change daily, weekly or monthly either. If for some reason it does change, I know where to get help and glad Brightside is there. So a weekly check-in reminder is ridiculous for me and I'd like that to stop. Thankfully I seem to now be on a 3-month reminder for appointments which is fine. Any communication more frequent than that is just unnecessary badgering for me.”
“I have yet to find a provider I feel comfortable with through this company. So far, my providers have given me mixed information and lack communication skills.”
“My psychiatrist is great. She's always prepared and keeps track of my progress. Therapy is a different story. Tried to begin therapy twice and both times the "provider" cancelled at the last minute. This has planted deep roots of distrust in the therapy program and I cannot recommend participating in it. It's strange to receive submissions into a "drawing" for interacting with other departments at Brightside. It's a lottery, gambling, and not a great fit for people with impulse control issues. Again, more evidence of not really understanding the target community.”
“Brightside is a very middle of the road therapy service. The providers I've been seeing are wonderful, knowledgeable, and flexible. I appreciate the ease of scheduling, the online only appointments, and the fact that medication can be prescribed through the app.
However, the app itself does not work very well. Even with the latest version, it often tells me it needs to update, and will crash for no reason upon trying to do certain things.
I was also told upon signing up that my insurance was in network and I was fully covered - all I would owe is a $25 dollar copay. This is still what the app claims, but I received a bill in the mail for nearly $400 for the month, as well as another for a separate $25 charge for a psychiatry appointment. How can Brightside itself claim I don't owe anything, and then charge me an outlandish amount of money? Overall, the people working for Brightside are lovely, but the service itself is shady.”
“I would rate higher, but I don't think the scope of services that I need are available by Brightside so for that reason I give it to with three stars for limited effectiveness”
“AUSTIN MANSFIELD HAS BEEN VERY HELPFUL. HE HAS BEEN OF GREAT HELP IN MY DEALING WITH DEPRESSION—HIS KNOWLEDGE OF MEDICATIONS HAS BEEN OUTSTANDING. I LOOK FORWARD TO HSI CONTINUED HELP.”
“As a Benefits Administrator, I take pride in trying out products or services, so I know what employees experience when they use the services we offer. As a person who recently experienced loss, I had the need for short-term help in dealing with anxiety and depression. Brightside was an affordable option for me versus seeking help from my PCP or referred psychologist. The only downside I see to Brightside is the platform. The online portal is lacking in information. There is no way for me to see my visit history, and in the beginning, I could not contact my provider for a refill and would have gone without had I not reached out to another provider.
I cannot say the providers are outstanding or comprehensive. They seem like they are in a rush to see as many clients in one day as possible. They spend maybe 3-5 minutes with me asking the same questions that are asked on my “Brightside check-ins.” I guess you get what you pay for.”
“I like that I can schedule an appt as soon as next day or even same day. I think there should be 50 min sessions, where you and the clinician can do talk therapy outside of med talk. It’s always so rushed and I never get ti say everythung I need to.”
“I have had an issue with the doctor responding back to my pharmacist when there is a question about a prescribed med. She didn't get any response from the doctor about the possible implications of taking trazodone with streterra. Big disappointment.”
