Waiting for help: what you can do during the mental-health waiting time

How long is 'normal'? The Treek standard explained

In the Netherlands there are agreements about how long you should have to wait at most: the so-called Treek standards. For mental health care they are: a maximum of 4 weeks between your application and your intake, a maximum of 10 weeks between intake and the start of treatment, and a maximum of 14 weeks in total. These are not non-binding targets, but nationally agreed upper limits.

The reality is, unfortunately, more stubborn. The Dutch Healthcare Authority (NZa) reported in early 2026 that a large share of people on a mental-health waiting list wait longer than these standards allow. Important to know: strikingly many people do not know that they can do something about that overrun. You soon will.

Ask yourself: do you actually know when your application came in exactly, and how many weeks have passed since then? That overview of dates is your starting point, because it determines whether a standard is being exceeded.

Your right: ask for waiting-list mediation

This is the most important thing in this whole article. Your health insurer has a so-called duty of care. That means the insurer is legally obliged to help you receive care in time. Waiting-list mediation (also called care mediation) is the concrete instrument for that.

How does it work? You call or email the care-mediation department of your health insurer, you explain what you are waiting for and for how long, and they search for a provider with a shorter waiting time on your behalf. It costs you nothing and it changes nothing about your deductible or reimbursement. The Consumers' Association actively calls on people who are waiting to make use of this, precisely because so few people do.

Many people hesitate, out of the idea 'I don't want to make a fuss' or 'I might lose my place'. That is exactly the thinking error you do not want to make here. You are not asking for a favour; you are making use of a right. What is stopping you, right now, from making that one phone call?

Stay on the radar of your GP and mental-health practice nurse

Waiting does not mean you are on your own. Your GP and the mental-health practice nurse (POH-GGZ) can support you during the waiting time, keep an eye on things and, if necessary, scale up. Feel free to make an appointment with the message: 'I am on the waiting list and I would like someone to keep an eye on how I am doing.'

That is not a needless luxury. Complaints can worsen while waiting, and that is precisely when it matters that someone sees it. If things escalate, your GP can adjust the urgency, arrange a bridging contact or think along about temporary support.

Make a simple agreement with yourself: if I notice things are going the wrong way, I call my GP instead of sitting it out. Waiting is no reason to ignore signals.

Take good care of yourself, in small, achievable steps

I am careful with advice like 'go for a nice walk', because when you are stuck that sometimes feels like an insult. Still, the core is true: precisely in an uncertain period it helps to hold on to a few anchors. Not to 'cure', but to keep yourself going until treatment begins.

Think of a predictable daily rhythm (getting up and going to bed on time, even in an empty week), a bit of movement, and contact with people you trust. Exercise and daylight have a proven, if modest, beneficial effect on mood and tension. It does not have to be grand: ten minutes outside is more than zero minutes outside.

Try also to adjust your expectations honestly. The goal of this period is not 'getting better on your own', but 'holding on until it is your turn'. That is a very different, far more achievable goal. Which one small habit would give you something to hold on to this week?

Break the isolation: talk about it

Waiting often happens in silence, and silence makes complaints heavier. Tell someone around you that you are on a waiting list and how you feel about it. That does not have to be a long story; sometimes 'I sought help and now I'm waiting, it's pretty hard' is already enough to feel less alone.

There are also low-threshold places to share your story while you wait. The patients' organisation MIND offers information and support, and there are online and telephone listening lines. A self-help group or peer-experience expert can mean surprisingly much in this phase.

Loved ones sometimes read along. Are you that loved one? Do not only ask 'have you heard anything yet?', but also 'how are you doing right now?'. Staying present during the waiting is perhaps the most valuable thing you can do.

When is it more than waiting? In a crisis

Waiting-list mediation and self-care are about the ordinary waiting period. But if you really cannot go on, something else applies. If you have acute, dark thoughts, or the feeling that you might harm yourself or someone else, do not wait for your intake.

During the day call your own GP directly, and outside office hours the GP out-of-hours service; they can urgently call in the crisis service. If you are thinking about suicide, you can reach 113 Suicide Prevention day and night, by phone on 0800-0113 or via the chat on 113.nl. There is someone there who listens, precisely at the moments when everything becomes too much.

Remember: the waiting list is for planned care. A crisis falls outside it, and there are other, faster routes for that. You never have to 'save up' an acute need until it is your turn.

Prepare your phone call: a short checklist

Whether you call your insurer's care mediation or contact a provider, it helps a lot to have a few things at hand. It makes the conversation shorter and prevents you having to call back later after all.

Handy to lay ready: the date on which you applied and with which provider, the policy number of your health insurance, and a short description of what you are waiting for (intake or treatment). Also consider beforehand how far you are willing to travel and whether you are open to (partly) online treatment, because that considerably increases the chance of a faster place.

Finally, write down what you want to ask, for example: 'What is currently the shortest waiting time you can find for me?' With those few notes you stand stronger, precisely at a moment when the mind is not always clear. What would you put first on that list?

Bridging options: from the practice nurse to reliable self-help

Between application and treatment there is often a gap, but that gap does not have to be entirely empty. The mental-health practice nurse (POH-GGZ) at your GP can sometimes offer bridging conversations: not a full treatment, but a place to share your story and get some handholds.

In addition there is reliable self-help. On Thuisarts.nl you find clear, doctor-backed information and exercises for common complaints such as low mood, anxiety and sleep problems. There are also recognised online self-help programmes and apps. Important: see them as support along the way, not as a replacement for treatment. For serious or increasing complaints professional help remains necessary.

Peer contact too can do surprisingly much in this phase. The idea that you are not the only one struggling, and hearing how others held on, often takes just a little of the sharpness off the loneliness.

The psychological side of waiting

We mostly talk about the practical side, but the waiting itself also does something to you. Uncertainty (how much longer?), the feeling of being 'on hold', and sometimes the quiet thought that you are apparently not urgent enough: that can make you despondent. Know that those feelings are normal and say nothing about how serious your complaints are.

What helps is to make the waiting as small as possible in your head. Not 'I still have months to go' (a mountain no one can climb), but 'I'll get through this week, and this one'. And give the waiting a purpose: it is not lost time, it is the run-up to help that is coming.

Do you notice hope sinking away and thoughts turning darker? Then sound the alarm with your GP. Waiting for treatment may never mean that in the meantime you are left to your fate.

Frequently asked: may I apply to several providers?

Yes, you may, and it is an understandable way to increase your chances of a faster start. Do bear in mind that you need a valid referral and that, as soon as you actually start somewhere, you neatly withdraw the other applications. That way you keep the waiting lists clean for the people who are still waiting.

If you doubt what is sensible in your situation, your GP or your insurer's care mediator can advise you. You do not have to figure all this out alone; that is exactly what those routes are for.

Online treatment: a serious option, not a last resort

Anyone open to (partly) online treatment often noticeably increases the chance of a faster start. But please do not see video calling as a watered-down alternative that you 'just have to take' because there is nothing better. For many complaints online treatment is just as effective as seeing someone on location, provided it is done carefully.

It sometimes even has advantages. You save travel time, you can talk from your familiar surroundings, and it makes it easier to find a clinician who speaks your language, even if they do not work around the corner. That last point in particular can make the difference for suitable, culturally sensitive care.

Of course it does not suit everyone or every complaint; sometimes physical contact is more desirable. But it is worth considering, certainly if it gets you help faster. Would treating online lower a threshold for you, or rather throw up a new one?