Have you discovered child abuse images online?
Do you experience attractions to minors?
If you are concerned about your thoughts involving minors, you may benefit from the resources below. If you are seeking professional support, remember that you can always reach out anonymously to potential therapists to gain an understanding of their views, approach to treatment, and mandatory reporting requirements. MAP Support Club – a peer support network for MAPs ages 13 and up and their allies. MSC maintains their own list of scientific sources and articles with personal experiences of and advice from non-offending minor attracted persons. Virtuous Pedophiles – a support group for adults who experience attractions to minors. VirPed is well known among researchers and has received statements of support from child protection and mental health experts. Association for Sexual Abuse Prevention (ASAP) – an organization aimed at helping connect MAPs with safe and qualified therapists. They maintain a database of mental health professionals who are willing to work with MAPs. B4U-ACT – a mental health organization focused exclusively on MAPs. They maintain a list of therapists that are safe for MAPs and a summary of research for those who want to better understand minor attractions. MAP Resources – a continuously updated list of the support resources available to MAPs. They also maintain separate lists of resources for MAPs who are minors and friends and family members of MAPs, as well as a research summary and therapy-specific information. The Global Prevention Project – an organization that collects a variety of resources centered around CSA prevention and the mental wellbeing of MAPs, including blogs, podcasts, and articles. Help Wanted – a self-help tool primarily intended for young MAPs. Help Wanted takes the form of an interactive video-based course and was created by child protection experts at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Stop It Now! – a CSA prevention organization that provides a variety of resources, including an easy-to-use guide to specific advice and support, a list of resources, many of which are intended for MAPs, and a helpline for those in need of immediate support. What’s OK? by Stop It Now – a set of informational resources intended for young people (ages 14-21) with questions about their sexual thoughts, behaviors, and/or feelings. They also provide a helpline for pressing questions. The following organizations provide therapist referrals or treatment programs for specific regions: If you are seeking therapy but need help affording it, you can apply for financial support. The following resources are available in languages other than English: On our blog:
Are you a survivor of abuse or their caregiver?
Are you a survivor of child sexual abuse (CSA)? The first thing you need to remember is that there is nothing wrong with you or your behavior, you have nothing to be ashamed of or blame yourself for. There are people who can help you, and some of them went through similar experiences and understand it. Are you a parent of a survivor or just looking for help on behalf of someone else? This page provides a good starting point for how you should approach what happened. Here are some organizations that provide support services to CSA survivors: RAINN, the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network – an organization with a range of sources, including a helpline (https://rainn.org/about-national-sexual-assault-telephone-hotline ) and guide to legal reports and procedures. Also available in Spanish. Stop It Now – an organization that provides a list of useful articles and resources in their help center, including guidance for those who suspect abuse and information for adult survivors. The Jacob Wetterling Resource Center – a resource for families of survivors. Darkness 2 Light (1-866-FOR-LIGHT) – an organization giving advice on mental support for survivors, legal status of abuse, and making a report. Their site has an inbuilt translator and a guide for residents of each US state, DrugRehab.com – an organization not related to CSA directly, it provides help and guidance for those who suffer from addictive behavior and substance abuse. On our blog:
Are your rights being infringed?
Even if your problem isn’t directly connected to the topic of sexual abuse or attraction to minors, we can provide resources on a range of issues. Registry Report – this is a resource for those placed on the sex offender registry, where you can learn about legal rights and protections of the registrants, get advice, and participate in activism for the reform of the registry. Artists at Risk Connection – a site that allows you to fill in your art media, approximate location, and a request for help, and displays links to guides and organizations that may be helpful. National Coalition for Sexual Freedom – an organization giving information and useful connections for people involved in kink communities. Their resources vary from glossaries to guides for civil activism. Don’t Delete Art Campaign allows you to report art that has been wrongly censored by a social media platform. Sex Workers Outreach Project USA – an organization for rights and empowerment of sex workers that provides educational materials, information about legal rights, tips on online and offline safety, and guides for allies. On our blog:
Do none of the above apply?
Please contact us if you still need help or would like to suggest a resource for the lists above. If you are asking for help reporting illegal content, please do not include information that could be used to locate the content.
Donate
When someone confesses that they have sexual thoughts that would be harmful if they ever acted on them, they are likely to be told “Get help!” There is no kind of help that can provide a “cure” for someone’s sexual attractions. However, professional therapy can be useful in assisting people to manage their thoughts successfully, without harming themselves or others.
The problem is that many people who are in need of help can’t afford it, and that many therapists don’t accept or aren’t qualified to see clients with sexual paraphilias. If you would like to assist someone in need to get help, donate here. Proceeds raised, less administrative costs, will be used provide clients with a consultation session with a qualified therapist. Prospective clients can apply here.
