Avery Neal, PhD, LPC

Dr. Avery Neal is a bestselling, 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?: Recognizing and Overcoming Subtle Abuse, gave readers the language to recognize subtle abuse and it 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, 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: Psychological Abuse and Its Effects on Physical and Mental Health, 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.

Dr. Neal is the author of the Psychological Abuse and Intimate Partner Violence Review, a training series to give healthcare professionals a clinical foundation to recognize psychological abuse in patients and their children, understand its physical, mental, and developmental impact, and identify and refer in a way that improves outcomes.

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.

Advisory Services

Dr. Neal helps healthcare organizations strengthen how psychological abuse and intimate partner violence are recognized and addressed within their departments. Organizations can begin in one of two ways, with staff education for their teams or with a Readiness Assessment that reviews current practice and sets a prioritized plan. From there, Dr. Neal can support a full program build and ongoing integration, so recognition becomes part of how care is delivered.

Healthcare Keynotes

Dr. Neal brings research-based keynotes, grand rounds, and in-service education to healthcare teams. Her sessions give nurses, physicians, therapists, and care teams a clear way to recognize psychological abuse and intimate partner violence and to respond in ways that open the door to support.

Bringing Dr. Neal’s Work to Your Organization

Dr. Neal works with hospitals and health systems to strengthen the recognition of psychological abuse and intimate partner violence and to support recovery as part of everyday care.

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My hope is to address some of the most common psychological experiences in a meaningful way. I am most interested in what impacts the quality of our lives, so I primarily write about such subjects. I hope that this blog serves as a space for you to explore issues that might be impacting you, reminding you that you are not alone.

Take a look around, and feel welcome to get in touch!