NYC area counciling for traumatic events

March 19, 2007 1:08 PM

A friend of mine is having a very hard time dealing with the aftermath of a recent traumatic event that remains prominently in the forefront of the local news.

Someone she dated a while ago, and who she worked with for a number of years up until a year or two ago, recently committed a horrific and violent act. She's having a terrible time dealing with the guilt of wondering what she could have done differently and grappling with her ability to read people and her faith in her own perceptions.

Are there grief councilors who work for low rates (she doesn't have insurance) or on a sliding scale who any of you NYC area mefites could recommend? Specifically someone who specialize in this sort of post-traumatic stress. Thanks for any help with names, etc. My email address is in my profile.

posted by stagewhisper to health & fitness (5 comments total)

The local YWCA might have sliding-scale counseling, or could certainly point your friend to somewhere that does.
posted by Skwirl at 1:30 PM on March 19, 2007

I don't know of specifics to share, but I'm glad that you are trying to help her. Years ago an old friend of mine used to hang out with someone who ended up committing a grisly murder. She has really never been the same since, she became overly paranoid & closed off to trusting people. When it happened, I felt like I should've done more for her but I didn't know what to do. She pushed my help away. She kept insisting she was fine & that she was freaked out but didn't want to talk about it. She wasn't fine and as far as I can tell she still isn't. We don't talk much nowadays.

I'm just writing this to say that I'm glad you're aware of her troubles & that you're trying to find help for her. Be a better friend than I was. If she says she's fine, be assured that she probably isn't.
posted by miss lynnster at 1:31 PM on March 19, 2007

I don't know if, in the eyes of the law, your friend would "count" as a victim, but NYC has a variety of government-sponsored/affiliated victim's assistance services. This is what I found when I googled some keywords. They will probably provide a referral if they can't help her themselves. Your friend is lucky to have you.
posted by rtha at 1:41 PM on March 19, 2007

Columbia University's Center for Educational and Psychological Services is a fantastic organization. They offer therapy and other services on a sliding scale (individual therapy is between $0 and $40 per session depending on income). The therapists there are psych grad students, but they are quite talented and extremely well supervised, so if you need more in-depth care than they can provide, they can refer you elsewhere. I can't recommend them highly enough.
posted by decathecting at 1:46 PM on March 19, 2007 [1 favorite]

Thank you everyone, I have faith she'll be able to get some help ASAP. All good suggestions so far, which will be followed up on.
posted by stagewhisper at 2:00 PM on March 19, 2007