Outpatient care in Minnesota
Outpatient care in Minnesota
Blue River Behavioral Health is a standalone Minnesota outpatient program for adults facing substance use, mental health conditions, or both. Your therapist, psychiatric provider, and case manager work from the same plan and stay in touch about your progress. So you only have to explain what is going on once. Nobody gets a copy of someone else's plan here, and yours will change as you do. You might be looking for yourself, for someone you love, or for a client you want to refer. Whichever one you are, you can call us before you have every answer.
Our mission is to meet you where you are. For one person, that is a first open conversation about drinking. For another, it is coming back after a setback, or finally dealing with anxiety that has started running their life. Wherever you start, we want each week with us to be worth your time. We want you to leave with skills you can use and people still in your corner.
Our clinicians use a trauma-informed approach, which means paying attention to how past trauma can affect stress and trust. Feeling safe in the room comes before anything else. You also get a real say in how your sessions go. Nobody here will judge how you got to this point. We follow through on what we tell you. You and your family can ask us anything and expect a straight answer.
Blue River offers four levels of outpatient care, and you can move between them as your needs change. The team stays the same. Many people start in our partial hospitalization program (PHP), with full-day treatment during the week. As things steady, they step down to our intensive outpatient program (IOP), then to outpatient (OP) sessions. Virtual IOP lets you attend sessions from home.
Learn MoreInsurance and Coverage
Blue River accepts all insurance plans, including out-of-network benefits. Cost questions keep many adults from calling. We answer those first.
Share your plan details, and our admissions team contacts your insurer. Then we explain what your plan covers in plain language. Nothing you share commits you to anything.
No obligation. We never quote costs before your benefits are checked.
Your plan starts before your first session. Our admissions team completes a pre-certification review with your insurer to confirm which level of care you qualify for. After you sign your consent forms, you complete two assessments. A needs assessment identifies what you need most. A biopsychosocial assessment looks at your history, strengths, challenges, and support system together. Your therapist then sits down with you to turn those results into an individualized treatment plan with clear goals.
Your sessions draw on evidence-based methods, and which ones you use depends on what you're working through. Many people start with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), which helps you catch the thought patterns that keep old habits running. When emotions run intense, or relationships feel strained, dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) gives you practical skills for those moments. Motivational interviewing works differently: it’s a conversation where your therapist helps you find and strengthen your own reasons for change. If peer support matters to you, a 12-step component runs alongside your therapy.
Each level of care includes case management, crisis support, and safety planning. Your case manager helps you coordinate appointments, referrals, and outside services. Crisis support means you can reach us when a hard moment hits between scheduled sessions. Safety planning works out in advance what you and your team will do if a crisis comes up. Before you finish, we plan your aftercare and alumni involvement.
Dual diagnosis, also called co-occurring disorders, means living with a substance use disorder and a mental health condition at once. Alcohol can quiet anxiety for a night, then leave it louder the next morning. Depression can make drinking or drug use feel like the only relief. That cycle is why we treat both conditions together. Your clinicians watch how a change in one affects the other. Early on, a psychiatric provider evaluates you to determine your diagnosis and any medication needs.
Our substance use care covers alcohol, opioids including fentanyl and heroin, and stimulants such as cocaine and meth. It also covers benzodiazepines, cannabis, prescription drug misuse, and use of more than one substance. On the mental health side, we treat depression, anxiety, PTSD, bipolar disorder, OCD, borderline personality disorder, and ADHD. If you are unsure what to call what you are going through, the assessments help sort it out.
You will work with a team of compassionate clinicians, and every staff member holds professional credentials and serious clinical training. Some members of our team have overcome addiction themselves. They can speak from experience about early recovery. That firsthand understanding shapes how they listen and what they notice. From your first day, you are part of this team too. We judge our own work by the progress you make.
Your first step is to call or message Blue River Behavioral Health. Tell our admissions team what has been happening, in whatever words feel right. We explain which services might match your needs and how your insurance may help cover them. We accept all insurance plans, including out-of-network benefits. Therapists, case managers, and crisis teams can also refer someone directly. Whenever you feel ready, reach out, and we will walk you through it.
Confidential. No obligation.
Before you call, it helps to picture how an outpatient program would fit into your regular week.
(612) 614-0964At Blue River, we work with adults 18 and older, so we do not treat teens. Our programs suit adults who need more structure than a weekly therapy appointment but can still live at home. That includes anyone stepping down from residential treatment, plus busy parents and professionals with packed schedules.
Your schedule depends on your level of care, from about five to six hours a day down to weekly sessions. Our partial hospitalization program (PHP) is the full-day option, running Monday through Friday. Intensive outpatient (IOP) is lighter, at about three hours a day, three to five days a week. Outpatient (OP) is the lightest commitment, meeting weekly or biweekly, and IOP and OP are also available virtually.
Yes, we offer MAT when your psychiatric provider finds it clinically appropriate. We use buprenorphine (Suboxone) for opioid use disorder and naltrexone for opioid or alcohol use disorder. Your provider also manages medication for co-occurring conditions like depression or anxiety, with regular follow-up and adjustments. No medication starts by default.
No, Blue River is fully outpatient, so we have no beds or on-site housing. If you need detox or residential care first, we help arrange a referral to a partner program. Once that stage ends, you can continue with us. We can also connect you with sober living if a stable place to stay would help.
Yes, as much as you want them to be. With your consent, family members can help shape your treatment plan. Family therapy sessions focus on repairing trust and communication. Our family education explains addiction and mental health in plain terms, so loved ones can support you in healthy ways.
