Find a Mental Health Professional
Coercive control can have serious and lasting effects. Survivors may experience chronic self-doubt, hypervigilance, grief, difficulty trusting their own judgment, and a sense of disconnection from themselves. These are understandable responses to prolonged manipulation, intimidation, isolation, and loss of autonomy—not signs of weakness or personal failure.
A therapist who listens without minimizing, understands trauma and coercive control, respects your autonomy, and avoids diagnosing someone they have not evaluated can help. No directory can guarantee a good fit or specialized expertise. The resources and screening questions below are starting points to help you make an informed choice.
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Find Mental Health Support Across the United States
If you need crisis support
If you are in immediate danger, call 911 when it is safe to do so. If you are in emotional distress, thinking about suicide, or need immediate crisis support, call or text 988 or visit 988Lifeline.org. The 988 Lifeline is free and confidential. For help specific to abuse or safety planning, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-SAFE (7233), text START to 88788, or visit TheHotline.org.
Start with national resources
SAMHSA FindTreatment.gov
Search for mental health treatment facilities throughout the United States and its territories. You can filter by location and services. A directory listing does not confirm expertise in coercive control or abuse, so use the screening questions on this page.
National Domestic Violence Hotline: Local Providers
Search for community programs that may offer counseling, advocacy, and referrals to clinicians familiar with domestic violence and survivor safety.
HRSA Find a Health Center
Locate community health centers that may provide behavioral-health services, including options for people who are uninsured or have limited ability to pay.
Questions to ask a prospective therapist
• Do you have experience supporting survivors of coercive control, intimate partner violence, post-separation abuse, or complex trauma?
• How do you avoid victim-blaming and support a client’s autonomy and safety?
• How do you approach couples counseling when abuse or coercive control may be present?
• Are you licensed to treat clients in my state, including by telehealth?
• What are your fees, insurance options, cancellation policies, and confidentiality limits?
• How do you handle clinical records, requests for documentation, subpoenas, and mandatory-reporting obligations?
Trust your response
It is reasonable to leave a provider who minimizes your experience, blames you for another person’s behavior, pressures you to reconcile, focuses on labels instead of patterns and evidence, or makes you feel unsafe. A poor fit does not mean therapy cannot help, and it does not make your experience less real.
Before you begin
Confirm the clinician’s active license and disciplinary history with the appropriate licensing board in your state. Ask the provider directly about training, availability, telehealth eligibility, insurance, fees, and confidentiality. If your device or accounts may be monitored, consider using a safer device or account when searching.
About these resources
The Fooled No More Foundation serves a U.S.-wide audience. We do not employ, screen, certify, or endorse the independent providers or organizations linked on this page, and we cannot guarantee availability, quality, safety, cost, or outcomes. Services and directory listings change. Use the screening questions above and your own judgment when deciding whether a provider is right for you.
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