Mid America Mental Health, LLC

“The only reason I'm leaving 3 stars is because of the therapist Michelle. The front office clerk is always nice and the new therapist I have now is wonderful. I feel better after every session with her. That wasn't the case with Michelle. I am not Christian and I felt like she was constantly mentioning the Bible. She was very dismissive of my actual feelings as I was going through a very emotional time with my grandparent being near death. As others have said, you feel worse after your session with her. She sucks!”

“After giving this practice 6–8 months of good faith, I ultimately felt I had to move on due to ongoing concerns with professionalism and reliability. Throughout my time here, a significant portion of nearly every session was consumed by recurring technical difficulties, which consistently cut into our therapeutic time. The situation came to a head when my therapist failed to join a scheduled session for over 45 minutes. When I contacted the office, I was told she had been attempting to reach me — though I had not received any calls. When she did finally connect, she appeared as if she just woke up and said the same technical issues that had been a pattern throughout our work together. I found it difficult to make meaningful progress when so much session time was spent troubleshooting rather than on the care I was seeking. For context, I recently transitioned to another provider, Thriveworks, and had a seamless first session — my therapist was present and ready at the scheduled time, and we utilized the full hour productively. The contrast was notable. I hope this feedback is helpful to the practice in improving the experience for future clients.”

“After being hospitalized for 62 days, I was referred to MidAmerica Mental Health LLC. I went into treatment hopeful and vulnerable, expecting compassion, professionalism, and support during one of the hardest periods of my life. Unfortunately, my experience was the opposite. During my intake with Dr. Gopal, I felt more like a check than a person. She was very flat in her demeanor and repeatedly interrupted me before I could finish answering questions. I later learned she would not actually be my therapist, only completing intake, but that was never clearly communicated upfront. When I was told I would be seeing Michelle, I initially felt hopeful. As an older Black woman, I thought she might better understand the cultural realities and emotional weight many inner-city youth carry into adulthood. Sadly, that was not my experience. At our first appointment, she made comments that immediately made me uncomfortable. She told me I needed to “practice smiling in the car” and said she was “trying to figure out how much skin I have in the game before deciding how much energy to invest in me.” She was also very religion-forward in a way that felt inappropriate and dismissive of my emotional state. Instead of feeling safe, I felt small, judged, and unheard. After that appointment, I spoke with a receptionist at the Merrillville location while completing psychological testing. She kindly offered to switch therapists, but I chose to give Michelle another chance because I wanted to believe maybe it was just an off day or poorly worded communication. At the next appointment, I ran into traffic and called ahead to let the office know I would be six minutes late. When I arrived, Michelle incorrectly accused me of missing my Merrillville appointment and made a backhanded comment saying, “And you were late today. I thought you weren’t coming.” I calmly explained that I had called ahead and that while noon appointments are difficult because I work overnight shifts, I still made the effort to come. I also clarified that I did not miss my testing appointment. I had rescheduled it and already completed it. She then asked, “Did you go to the appointment on the 8th?” I responded, “I rescheduled it and completed it on the 15th instead.” Her response was: “I didn’t ask you all of that. I asked if you did the testing on the 8th.” I repeated that I had already explained I rescheduled and completed it on the 15th. She then said, “You’re not answering my question, but we can move on. I don’t argue with clients. I don’t have to.” At that point, I immediately requested another therapist. Her tone throughout our interactions was condescending, dismissive, and extremely unprofessional. Therapists are placed in positions of trust. Clients are expected to be vulnerable and honest about the darkest parts of their lives. Communication delivered with hostility, sarcasm, or superiority can genuinely harm someone who is already struggling. This experience did not help my mental health. It contributed to a setback during a time when I desperately needed support. People seeking therapy are not just appointments on a schedule. Many are fighting for their lives. That should never be forgotten.”

“I had a very disappointing experience. I went in for help with marital issues, but was advised to consider a vasectomy, which felt inappropriate and unrelated to my concerns. I also felt unheard during the session, with repeated questions while the focus seemed to be on typing notes. I did not feel respected or supported and did not return.”