Helpful Resources
Practical support for people dealing with emotional abuse, toxic relationship dynamics, and the everyday impact of trauma. We include both general tools and Baltimore-specific community health information.
Need help right now?
If you are in immediate danger, call 911. Any of these lines is free and answers at any hour.
- 988Call or text for suicide and crisis support. Chat at 988lifeline.org.
- 410-433-5175Baltimore Crisis Response. Mental health and substance use crisis line for Baltimore City.
- Text 898-211Maryland crisis support by text. You can also dial 211 and press 1.
- Text HOME to 741741Crisis Text Line. Talk with a trained counselor by text.
- 1-800-799-7233National Domestic Violence Hotline. Text START to 88788, or chat at thehotline.org.
- 410-889-7884House of Ruth Maryland, 24-hour hotline for intimate partner violence.
Local & community (Baltimore)
Crisis and mental health
- 24/7 crisis hotline at 410-433-5175, mobile crisis teams, and referrals for mental health and substance use care. Free to Baltimore City residents.
- Dial 211 to be connected to local help. Press 1 for crisis support. Search services by zip code online.
Counseling and community organizations
- Free counseling, legal help, and shelter for survivors of intimate partner violence and their children. 24-hour hotline: 410-889-7884.
- Statewide helpline at 1-800-634-3577 (1-800-MD-HELPS). Connects you to local advocates and shelters.
- The city’s behavioral health authority. A place to start when you are looking for counseling or treatment.
I add organizations to this page only after checking them. If you know a trauma-informed counselor or community group Baltimore should know about, send us a note.
Food, housing, and re-entry
- Dial 211 or search online for food, housing, utility help, and other basic needs.
- Find food pantries and meal sites near you.
Community health and resilience
Healing is easier with support, and support isn’t spread evenly across the city. Needing help is not weakness. It is a response to what you’ve carried, in a system that doesn’t always make help easy to find. We’ll keep sharing what works in Notes.
Relationships & emotional abuse
Understand what’s happening
- What gaslighting, isolation, and hot-and-cold treatment look like, and how to name them. Includes related videos.
- Why patterns repeat, what trauma bonding is, and why leaving is hard.
- How what you learned as a child shows up in your relationships now.
Safety planning basics
If you are afraid of someone, a safety plan can help. This is a short overview, not a full plan. A trained advocate can build one with you for free: call 1-800-799-7233 or visit thehotline.org.
- Choose one person you trust and tell them what is happening.
- Keep copies of key documents (ID, benefits, medical and legal papers) somewhere safe outside the home.
- Know where you could go quickly and how you would get there.
- Phones, computers, and shared accounts can be monitored. When you look for help, use a device the other person can’t access.
- Save hotline numbers somewhere safe.
Books worth your time
- The Body Keeps the ScoreBessel van der Kolk. How trauma lives in the body and what helps.
- Complex PTSD: From Surviving to ThrivingPete Walker. A practical guide to C-PTSD and recovery.
- Why Does He Do That?Lundy Bancroft. Explains abusive and controlling behavior in men.
- Adult Children of Emotionally Immature ParentsLindsay C. Gibson. On growing up with emotionally unavailable parents.
- Running on EmptyJonice Webb. On emotional neglect in childhood.
Free guides
- Learn the signs of abuse, build a safety plan, or chat with an advocate.
- Information on healthy and unhealthy relationships, built for teens and young adults.
General healing tools
Nervous system regulation
- Longer exhaleBreathe in for 4, out for 6 to 8. Repeat a few rounds.
- 5-4-3-2-1 groundingName 5 things you see, 4 you feel, 3 you hear, 2 you smell, 1 you taste.
- Orient to the roomLook around slowly. Say where you are, today’s date, and that you are safe right now.
- Feel the floorPress your feet down and notice the support under you. Press your palms together or against a wall.
- Gentle movementWalk, stretch, or shake out your hands.
If a practice makes you feel worse, stop and try another, or talk with a counselor.
Journal prompts
- What did I learn to do as a child to stay safe? Do I still do it?
- What does my body do when I don’t feel safe?
- Whose approval am I still working for?
- What would I say to a friend who told me my story?
- What do I want to put down, and what do I want to carry forward?
- Where do I feel supported right now? Where do I need more?
Affirmations
- My reaction made sense for what I lived through.
- I am allowed to take up space.
- I can honor where I came from and still change what I do.
- Healing is not a straight line.
Free downloads
Free downloads are on the way. Join the newsletter to get them first.
Phone numbers and services change. Please confirm details before you rely on them. Last checked October 2026.