Mental Health Resources For Survivors

Survivors’ Committee recognizes that the bankruptcy process for many Survivors will be new and potentially re-traumatizing at times. Because of this, Survivors may choose to seek mental health assistance. The Committee encourages anyone who feels they could benefit from mental health assistance to seek it out. Surviving sexual abuse is challenging enough and the bankruptcy process is often added stress. PLEASE, seek assistance if you need it. With that in mind, the Committee has gathered some resources for you to consider. There is a great deal of information online related to adult Survivors of abuse while they were a child. Please be aware that some is better than others and it can be overwhelming to dive into. The Committee does NOT endorse any one of the resources below specifically but provides this information to make it a little easier to find assistance.

Note: The first step is to investigate your own health insurance benefits if you have them. Many are employer-provided. If you are hesitant to contact your employer’s Human Resources office to discuss this, you can contact your insurer directly. By law, your insurance must cover the cost of mental health assistance at a comparable level to the physical health care you may be used to receiving. This is discussed here. In all cases, it is important to ask what your annual limits are for the coverage of treatment that you receive.

If you are in crisis:

Dial 988 to contact the national “Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.” You can also visit 988lifeline.org to receive assistance from counselors via text, chat, or ASL video phone if you are deaf or hard of hearing.

Assistance in finding a therapist or treatment facility:

If you need ongoing free or low-cost assistance, please check these resources:

The National Alliance on Mental Illness is an excellent resource for finding assistance in your specific State. It has a 24/7 helpline at 800-950-6264. https://nami.org/  You can select your State here, and you’ll find both online resources and in-person assistance. The specific site for Maryland where you can select your County is here. 

Additionally, there are many nationwide resources below. Some are focused specifically on male Survivors. Many also have resources for partners of those who have been abused: