MIT MyLife Services

MIT provides MyLife Services for all staff, faculty, postdocs—and members of their households—to support wellbeing and work-life balance. The program offers confidential, short-term counseling, consultation, research, and referrals for emotional and work-life balance issues. You can reach out to MyLife Services for:

• Financial Consultation: Help with debt management, budgeting, and financial planning.
• Legal Assistance: Legal consultation with an attorney, with referrals for most legal issues.
• Stress Reduction: Assessment of stress level and techniques/tips for managing stress.
• Short-term Counseling: In-person, phone, or video sessions to help address emotional issues, or problems with alcohol or drugs for yourself or someone you care about.
• Critical Incident Support: Counseling and consultation for individuals, HR, managers, and the community before, during, and after traumatic events such as suicide, violence, and natural and human-made disasters.
• Grief Counseling: Supportive counseling and consultation for individuals and families who have experienced a loss.
• Manager Consultation: Guidance for managers to skillfully navigate workplace challenges while maintaining boundaries.
• Child Care/Parenting Resources: Research and referrals for a variety of child care needs and parenting questions.
• Sleep Coaching: Tips and tools to help you get a good night’s rest.
• Career Support: Consultation on career advancement, career exploration, and resume review.
• Nutrition Consultation: Support from a nutritionist on weight management, allergies, and other dietary concerns.
• Work-Life Resources: Targeted research and referrals for everything from relocation services to pet sitting.

Welcome. Your call will be answered 24/7/365 by a master’s or Ph.D.-level counselor who will greet you and ask how they can help.

Questions. The counselor will explain MyLife Services and how your privacy is protected, then ask you some questions about your situation. Their goal is to understand your needs and identify the type of support that will be most helpful to you. The counselor will assess your needs and either support you directly or connect you with a Work-Life Consultant who can assist with child care, elder care, legal and financial matters, etc.

Support. The same counselor or Work-Life Consultant will work with you until you have the support you need. This may include counseling, research related to issues or resources, or referrals to local counselors, service providers, and other experts.

Follow-up. MyLife Services will follow up with you to ensure that your needs have been met and ask whether there is anything else they can do for you.

MyLife Services counselors are available 24/7/365. Whether you call at midnight, on a weekend, or during a holiday, you will reach a counselor right away for immediate support.

Depending on the reason for the call, your household member will speak with either a master’s or Ph.D.-level counselor, or a Work-Life Consultant. MyLife Services will explain the confidentiality of the call and then ask questions about the reason for the call. Your household member will not need to provide your name or the name of any other MIT-affiliated relation. If further resources are needed, your household member may be asked to provide his/her name and contact information.

Start by calling MyLife Services 24/7/365 to speak confidentially with a MyLife Services counselor, who holds a master’s degree or Ph.D. Your counselor offers support in the moment, listens to what you're facing, and helps you find the right counselor for in-person sessions. When you're matched, you meet with a licensed counselor for confidential, no-cost meetings near home or work.

Each person receives some free counseling sessions per life concern. For example, you may need help after the death of a loved one and later want guidance on a relationship challenge. MyLife Services will provide free counseling sessions for each of those concerns. You can see the same counselor each time, or request one with different expertise or a different location.

When you first reach out to MyLife Services, they will confirm your health insurance coverage—whether through MIT or another plan, such as a spouse's—and match you with a counselor who accepts your insurance. Your initial sessions are provided through MyLife Services and are not billed to your insurance. If you choose to continue counseling after those sessions, you can remain with the same counselor and begin using your health insurance benefits.

What is covered in a 30-minute legal consultation?
The consultation is an opportunity to meet with a legal professional that handles the area of law you need for up to 30 minutes, free of charge. You can outline your matter, let the attorney know your needs and concerns, and ultimately determine if you want or need to retain the services of an attorney. During the consultation, the attorney is not obligated to provide any work that would constitute representation of a client. This would include items such as document review, document preparation, or providing strict legal advice.

MyLife Services connected me to CLC for ongoing legal services. How do I know that the attorney is reputable?
CLC seeks out attorneys for their legal network based on the following criteria:

• Must be practicing law for a minimum of five years
• Must carry their own Malpractice Insurance
• Must be in good standing and have zero disciplinary actions from the attorney’s state bar association

CLC re-certifies each of their attorneys on an annual basis to ensure that these standards are met. Attorneys are asked to update CLC whenever their contact information or area of practice has changed. However, if you run into difficulty reaching the attorney, please call CLC for assistance.

Legal disclaimer: Should you retain an attorney through a MyLife Services referral, you are doing so outside the EAP services provided through MyLife Services, and you are responsible for all fees and costs associated with legal services. 

MyLife Services cannot provide legal consultation for issues related to employment law. However, they can assist you in locating resources in your community.

We encourage you to use MyLife Services whenever the need arises. You can call for multiple concerns—at the same time or at different times. You can call for help with a legal concern and also request sleep coaching. Later, you may need summer camp research assistance or help with a budget or career support. MyLife Services is available when you need it.

MyLife Services will help you find appropriate child care based on your criteria. They will ask you questions about your preferences, such as location, type of care (e.g., in-home care, child care centers, family child care), price range, etc. They can also search for after-school care and summer camps. Based on your criteria, you will receive a personalized referral list of licensed and vetted child care providers, along with information about availability, hours, cost, transportation, and other areas you indicated. MyLife Services offers this research and referral service at no cost, but you are responsible for child care fees. They can also help you find subsidies for child care if you are eligible.

MyLife Services offers unlimited, confidential manager consultations. Any staff with roles involving the management of individuals or teams, including local HR, can utilize this service. Consultations help managers skillfully navigate workplace challenges while maintaining boundaries.

Examples include:

• Mental health concerns impacting performance
• Proactive planning for difficult conversations with staff
• Grief affecting individuals and teams
• Effectively referring an employee to MyLife Services

MyLife Services counselors do not take the place of MIT's Human Resources Officers (HROs) or advise on specific MIT policies.

All contact with MyLife Services is confidential. The MIT MyLife Services benefit is administered by an outside organization that provides Employee Assistance Programs. MyLife Services’ staff never tell anyone at MIT who called or the specifics of any situation. The only exceptions are those required to be reported per state and/or federal law.

MyLife Services is available to members of the MIT community and their household members anywhere in the United States.

Just call MyLife Services at 844-405-LIFE (844-405-5433) and a counselor will address your questions or concerns.

Download a MyLife Services flyer.

Download a MyLife Services Manager flyer.