Local mental-health services growing, but more access is needed, experts say
As the population explodes in Williamson County, the need for mentalhealth services will continue to increase — especially for historically marginalized communities, experts say.
Despite the inroads that have been made, there are still fewer services available on the eastern side of Williamson County versus areas such as Georgetown and, to the west, Round Rock and Cedar Park.
“Definitely, there is still a mental-health shortage,” said Candi Gadison, executive director and clinical supervisor of Impact Counseling Services.
However, with Samsung Austin Semiconductor poised to open in 2026, things are likely to change, she added.
“Taylor is growing with Samsung, so those services are going to come,” Gadison said. “There are going to be more people, and there is more awareness about Taylor and the east side now.”
The challenge is to have enough counselors to keep pace with population growth, officials said.
“In Williamson County, when you look at the ratio of mental-health providers to residents, it is one mental-health provider to a population of 1,439 people,” said Abena Asante, a senior program officer at St. David’s Foundation, an equity-focused nonprofit that provides $80 million each year for health and wellness initiatives in the greater-Austin metropolitan area. “We know that is not enough and more has to be done.”
Williamson County is said to be the 10th fastest-growing county in the country, adding more than 25,000 residents from 2023-24, when the latest figures were available, officials said. By 2050, the number of residents could grow to 1.6 million; today, that figure is about 750,000, according to government figures.
MORESERVICES AREBEINGOFFERED
Still, mental-health practices are expanding in east Wilco and more are expected, officials said.
In 2020, Lindsey Heselbarth, a fulltime school counselor with the Hutto Independent School District, launched her own therapy practice during her off hours from a small, rented office space at the Hatah House, 101 Taylor St. in Hutto.
“I worked at the high school, and for so many kids and families, I had no place to send them,” recalled Heselbarth, the owner of Better Health Counseling, now located at 351 Exchange Blvd. “I wanted to focus more on going deeper with the kids and focus on treating them versus triaging the problems.”
It was not long before Heselbarth’s practice began to expand dramatically thanks to referrals and inquiries from families with children, couples and individuals seeking in-person sessions.
“I started going full time in 2021, and then in 2022, we started hiring a new therapist every month,” Heselbarth said. “It slowed for a good year in there, but I went from a one-office space in Hutto to a three-office space in 2022…and then later that the next year, we expanded the Hutto location from a three-office space to a six-office suite…Just two weeks ago I moved from a six-office space in Hutto to a 12-office space in Hutto.”
These days, Better Health Counseling is one of the largest private practices in eastern Williamson County, with additional locations in Georgetown and Round Rock. Heselbarth’s staff now includes 30 therapists specializing in everything from eye movement desensitization and reprocessing, a technique used to treat post-traumatic stress and other disorders, as well as other state-of-the art methods, Heselbarth said.
“I just saw a huge, underserved need,” Heselbarth said. “I never intended to have a practice of this size. I started off just wanting to have maybe two or three therapists working with me, but yeah, we have grown, and our plan is to continue to grow.”
OTHERRESOURCES
According to officials, since 2022, St. David’s Foundation has supported mentalhealth services in eastern Williamson County through grants to a number of organizations, including Boys and Girls Club of East Williamson County, Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute for Texas and the Taylor Public Library as part of the “Libraries for Health” pilot initiative.
Asante said in eastern Williamson County, a major partner for her foundation is Bluebonnet Trails Community Services — a local mental-health authority for an eight-county Central Texas region. It specializes in treating acute mental illness or emotional disorders, autism and pervasive developmental disorders from infancy to adulthood, both virtually as well as on-site at the clinic at 404 Carlos G. Parker Blvd. N.W. in Taylor.
“As part of our relationship with that organization, we funded them to support building out their Taylor clinic many years ago (in 2013),” Asante said. “This allowed them to be able to offer behavioral health services on-site in Taylor to help mitigate some of the access issues and transportation, etc.”
Peggy Langenfeld, Bluebonnet’s regional director, said her organization, working in tandem with several other local providers and agencies, can deliver top-notch services for people from all walks of life — and all parts of the county.
“We do not have a waitlist for people in eastern Williamson County,” Langenfeld said. “Come on in. We will hook people up and get them seen.”
Langenfeld said her organization accepts all forms of insurance, including Medicaid, and operates on a sliding scale.
“The services we provide are equal regardless of ability to pay,” she added. “If you are the CEO of a corporation and want to come in for services or if you are unhoused without resources, you will be treated with the same level of care.”
Langenfeld said in March 2025 alone, her organization served more than 4,000 patients in Williamson County.
HELPFORSTUDENTS
Another major mental-health provider receiving support from St. David’s Foundation through the Interagency Support Council of Eastern Williamson County is Impact Counseling Services.
Since 2007, this nonprofit has provided students with free-of-charge sessions with counselors, social workers and other mental-health professionals in the Taylor, Hutto, Granger, Bartlett, Jarrell and Thrall independent school districts.
“Our goal is to reduce barriers and increase access to service, and so if we can bring the services to the kids during the school day, that eliminates issues with transportation, issues with parents having to take off work and risk losing a job or income,” Gadison said “It helps with continuity of care because we are there every week.”
Impact, which is funded in part by the school districts, also provides free mentalhealth services for families and staff, as well as training in crisis response and safety planning — among other interventions.
“We may go into a school and provide trauma informed care, as well as suicideprevention training,” Gadison said. “We might also provide information about how to work with students and how to build relationships.”
According to officials, last year, Impact Counseling served more than 600 individuals in East Williamson County.
Recently, Impact even set up an outpatient office in Taylor to expand access opportunities for students and their families, and has added two community health workers, funded through United Way for Greater Austin, which provides services to pregnant teens and women up to 12 months postpartum.
“We were trying to have more of a presence in eastern Williamson County because we know there is a need, so when Jolly Giant Pediatrics offered us an office there, we said, ‘Yes,’” Gadison said.
The clinic is at 2004 Old Granger Road in Taylor.
COUNSELINGCRIMEVICTIMS
Priscilla Moreno, the victim services coordinator for the Taylor Police Department, who previously worked in the same position in the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office, said Impact Counseling is making a difference for some of her youngest clients.
Normally, children and their families must travel all the way to Georgetown for free counseling at The Williamson County Children’s Advocacy Center, a nonprofit that specializes in helping children and families affected by abuse and violence, but now they have a local alternative through Impact Counseling at their school, Moreno said.
“When I first noticed what they were doing through Impact Counseling, I was blown away,” Moreno said. “I am glad because those kids and their families now have two options.”
Despite the progress, Moreno said she still sees a gap for free mental-health services, especially for her adult crime victims, who usually have to travel to Round Rock for Hope Alliance, another nonprofit that offers free shelter and counseling for survivors of family and sexual violence.
“I cannot tell you how many times I have a survivor say, ‘I don’t want to press charges’ or ‘I’m not ready,’” she said. “Whenever they call, I recommend counseling as much as they can, and I try to encourage them. That’s why I always give them gas cards, and I ask for gas cards to help them to get to their counseling sessions.”
Realtor
THEFUTURE
This summer, St. David’s will offer a new funding opportunity focused on nonclinical support that “prioritizes inclusivity, cultural relevance for communities that may not engage as regularly with traditional clinical services, including low income and historically marginalized communities,” Asante said. “And when I think about historically marginalized groups, rural comes to mind.”
“We are looking at the mental wellbeing ecosystem that provides support in the community for individuals to navigate stressors and challenges,” Asante added. “Including the mutual aid, the faith community and the neighborhood groups.”
While mental-health services on the eastern side of the county are improving, Asante said the foundation encourages locals to come together and take an active role in finding creative solutions for the holes that still exist.
“The community has to take the ownership and the leadership,” Asante said. “And the foundation will walk alongside them and provide support.”
“Definitely, there is still a mental-health shortage.”
— CANDI GADISON | Impact Counseling Services
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