Courses · The Neal Method™
Three self-paced courses from psychotherapist and international author Dr. Avery Neal. Each lesson builds on the one before, the same way therapy does, so you can understand what happened to you, heal from it, and feel calm in your body again.
Her work has appeared on
Books published in twelve languages
50%
Half of Americans report experiencing psychological abuse by a partner during their lifetime.
Anyone
Psychological abuse affects people of every gender, age and background.
No scars
It leaves no visible marks, so many people live with it for years without a name for it.
Equally harmful
The effects of psychological abuse are just as detrimental as the effects of physical abuse.
The effects of psychological abuse are just as detrimental as the effects of physical abuse.
Understanding it
Psychological abuse is a repeated pattern of behavior, including criticism, manipulation, isolation, intimidation and control, used to wear down another person's sense of reality, worth and independence. It leaves no bruises, which is why it goes unnamed for so long, and why research shows its effects on the mind and body can be as damaging as physical violence.
It is also called emotional abuse or coercive control, and it sits underneath every other form of abuse. Naming the pattern is the first step toward recovering from it.
Where to start
Psychological abuse rarely announces itself. It arrives as confusion, as constant apologizing, as the slow sense that you have become a smaller version of yourself. Most people spend years trying to name it.
These courses give you the language, the clinical grounding, and the practical tools to see the dynamic clearly and to begin finding steady ground again, at whatever pace fits your life.
How the courses work
Every course is built to fit into your life as it is right now, not the other way around.
The three courses
Take them in order, or start with the one that meets you where you are right now.
Step one
How do you know if you are in an abusive relationship?
$97
8 video lectures
Step two
Come back to the person you were before all of this.
$397
10 video lectures
Step three
Your body has been on high alert for a long time. It can stand down.
$397
5 video lectures
The Neal Method™ · The complete course
Recognizing psychological abuse starts with learning to see it clearly, often for the first time. Healing means rebuilding the confidence and identity that abuse erodes. Recovering from the anxiety it leaves behind means learning to regulate a nervous system that has been on high alert for far too long.
Move through the full arc, or return to whichever course meets you where you are right now.
Bundle offer
All three together for $697, instead of $891 when purchased separately.
What people are saying
Over 20,000 people have taken Dr. Neal's courses. These are their words, shared with permission.
Feeling very empowered being part of this course. I feel quite hopeful that going through this training will be the last thing I need to take and keep the blinders off and close the door to this relationship once and for all. Knowledge is power and empowering!
This course is very good. Very clear and helpful. I see now that I didn't understand the subtle forms of controlling behavior. I love the title of this course! It really says it like it is. I have questioned what is normal and tried to deny my feelings, but eventually had to face reality. Thank you so much for validating my experience.
I am grateful for this course and am hoping to gain more perspective to provide me better coping skills and tools to grow and find joy in this challenging situation. It's a process, but I'm hopeful I can create a workable, peaceful relationship. I love my partner, and see his good qualities and the reasons he may have learned to be a subtle controller/abuser, but I also realize life is too short to live in such a stressful, unfulfilled state.
This has to be the best course I have taken, and I have taken a few. Avery's messages are very poignant.
I have complete faith that with the help of this course and work on myself, I will have a healthy relationship.
I feel at home for the first time in a long time. I don't feel crazy anymore. This is super eye opening for me. Last year I went on a self-discovery path. Started looking at toxic things in my life. I know this course will help continue my healing process. Doing the work is so humbling.
About the author
Internationally published author, researcher and psychotherapist
Her new book offers language, clarity and a path forward for those navigating psychological abuse, and for the people who support them.
Dr. Avery Neal is an internationally published author, researcher, and psychotherapist. She is the leading expert on psychological abuse and its effects on mental and physical health.
Her first book, If He's So Great, Why Do I Feel So Bad?, gave readers the language to recognize subtle abuse and has been published in twelve languages. More than 20,000 people worldwide have taken her courses, which are also used by clinicians, universities, and organizations. Her writing and interviews have appeared on Oprah.com and in Counseling Today and Best Self Magazine, and she has spoken at conferences alongside some of the world's leading experts in psychology.
Her second book, Loving You Shouldn't Be Hurting Me, deepens that work. Drawing on current research and findings from her clinical practice, it examines how psychological abuse harms the nervous system, the body, and the mind. It also introduces the Neal Method and her CLEAR framework for recovery.
Her work now extends beyond individual clinical practice to address psychological abuse across the broader healthcare system. Dr. Neal is advancing the clinical and medical recognition of psychological abuse, a form of harm that remains largely unassessed and unidentified in healthcare settings. She has developed assessment and identification tools where none previously existed and is building the practical resources frontline clinicians need to recognize psychological abuse in their patients.
Through partnerships with hospitals, health systems, and health plans, she is bringing her psychoeducational programs directly to patients so that recognizing psychological abuse and supporting recovery become part of care.
Newest book
Psychological Abuse and Its Effects on Physical and Mental Health
This book is for anyone who has lived with psychological aggression, which touches nearly half of all people in the United States. This invisible cruelty sits underneath every other form of mistreatment, which makes it the hardest to recover from.
Clinical research shows that subtle psychological abuse does the most lasting damage. Anyone caught in an unhealthy, toxic or controlling relationship will find a clear path forward here, whether the relationship is ongoing, long over, or rooted in childhood. If you have felt physical or mental health symptoms from years of manipulation, you will find real validation and a full roadmap to heal mind, body and spirit.
The book speaks to every kind of trauma. Drawing on a career devoted to helping all survivors, Dr. Neal also writes about how men and children are affected by psychological abuse.
Her first book
Recognizing and Overcoming Subtle Abuse
In this groundbreaking book, Dr. Avery Neal, psychotherapist and clinic founder, helps you recognize the warning signs of what she calls subtle abuse. Once you can see patterns that never made sense before, you are better able to make changes and free yourself from ongoing aggression and control.
Nearly half of all women and men in the United States experience psychological abuse without realizing it. Manipulation, deception and disrespect are hard to spot because they leave no physical scars, yet they can be just as traumatic.
Dr. Neal has guided countless people to regain their self-esteem, their joy and their lives after this kind of relationship.
The courses
Dr. Neal's courses are practical, grounded in research, and yours to return to whenever you need them.
The subtle signs that most people miss
Learn how to identify the red flags most people overlook. This self-paced course helps you name confusing behavior, rebuild confidence in your perceptions, and decide what is healthy and what is not.
Learn moreRebuild your confidence and identity
A step-by-step path to reclaiming who you are after psychological abuse. Rebuild self-trust, restore your identity, and create healthier relationships with yourself and others.
Learn moreHeal your nervous system after abuse
Designed for anyone whose nervous system is still recovering from a stressful relationship. You will learn practical tools to calm rumination, regulate anxiety, and restore a sense of safety in your body.
Learn moreCommon questions
Psychological abuse is a repeated pattern of criticism, manipulation, isolation, intimidation or control that slowly wears down a person's sense of reality, worth and independence. It is also called emotional abuse or coercive control, and research shows it can be as harmful as physical abuse.
Common signs include feeling confused or on edge most of the time, doubting your own memory, walking on eggshells, feeling cut off from friends and family, and being blamed for problems you didn't cause. Recognizing Psychological Abuse walks you through these patterns so you can trust what you're seeing.
Yes. Long periods of stress and fear keep the nervous system on high alert, which is linked to anxiety, depression, sleep problems, digestive issues, chronic pain and other conditions. Dr. Neal's newest book explores this connection in depth.
Most people begin with Recognizing Psychological Abuse, then move to Healing After Psychological Abuse, then Trauma Anxiety Recovery. Each one stands on its own, so you can start wherever you feel the most need.
Recognizing Psychological Abuse is $97. Healing After Psychological Abuse and Trauma Anxiety Recovery are $397 each. All three together are $697, a savings of $194.
Yes. The courses are on-demand video lessons you can watch privately, on any device, whenever it suits you. Access begins right after checkout.
Avery Neal, PhD, LPC, is an internationally published author, researcher and psychotherapist, and the leading expert on psychological abuse and its effects on mental and physical health.
No. The courses are educational and are a caring companion to support from a licensed professional. If you are in danger, call 911 or the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233.
You don't have to have it figured out first. You only have to begin.
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