Without going into the tremendous amount of statistics out there about women who will be abused by their partner (one in three, for those curious)*or those who remain silent (abused women, transgender folks, and men), I want to list the resources available to those who are in these situations.
I am a survivor of violence and of abuse, and I speak out about it often – not as a sympathy grab or a means of asking for attention but because I think bringing a voice to the voiceless is one of the ways I can be an advocate for survivors.
That being said, sometimes, I write about my own situation and what I have survived or I write fictional accounts of such abuse – things that might be triggering to survivors. It would be irresponsible of me to write and to advocate for survivors without providing resources.
United States (Break the Silence Survivor Helpline): 1 (855) 287-1777
(The National Domestic Violence Hotline): 1 (800) 799-7233
United Kingdom (Freephone National Domestic Abuse Helpline): 0808 200 0247
Galop (for LGBTQIA+ Community): 0800 999 5428
European Union
Albania (Linja e Keshillimit per Gra dhe Vajza): 116
Andorra (Servei d’Atenció a les Víctimes de Violència Domèstica i Familiar): 181
Austria (Wiener Interventionsstelle gegen Gewalt in der Familie): 0800 222 555
Belarus: 8801 100 8801
Belgium: 1712
Bosnia and Herzegovnia: 1265 (Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina)
Bulgaria: 0800 55 44
Czech Republic: +420 251 51 13 13
Denmark: +45 70 20 30 82
Finland: 358-800-02400
France: 3919
Germany: 08000 116 016
Ireland: 1800-341-900
Italy: 1522
Kosovo (Direct Line for Victims of Violence): 0800 11112 or (SOS Linja): 381 39 033 00 98
Latvia (Crisis Helpline): 67222922
Liechtenstein (Women’s Helpline Frauenhaus): 423 380 02 03
Lithuania Women’s Line (Lygus): 8800 66 366
Luxembourg Fraentelefon: 12 344
Macedonia (National SOS Line – Phone of Trust): 15 315 or SOS National Mobile Line: 389 75 141 700
Malta (Appogg Agency Supportline): 179
Moldova (Trust Line): 8008 8008
Montenegro (SOS Helpline For Victims of Violence): 080 111 111 or 202 322 54
Netherlands (Veilig Thuis): 0800 20009
Norway (Crisis Situation Helpline): 800 40 008
Poland (National Emergency Service for Survivors of Family Violence): 801 12 00 02 or National Emergency Service for Survivors of Family Violence – Blue Line: 22 668 70 00
Portugal (Serviço de Informação às Vitimas de Violéncia Doméstica): 800 202 14
Romania ADRA: 021 25 25 117
Baia Mare: Centru Artemis: 0262 25 07 70
CMSC (Iasi): 023 225 29 20
Sensi Blue Foundation (Bucharest): 021 311 46 36
Sibiu: A.L.E.G.: 075 389 35 31
Targu Mures: IEESR: 026 521 16 99
Timisoara: APFR: 0256 29 3183
Russia ANNA (National Center for the Prevention of Violence): 8 800 7000 600
Serbia (Helpline for Victims of Domestic Violence): 0800 100 600 or (Network of Women’s Hotline in Vojvodina): 0800 10 10 10
Slovakia (National Line for Women Surviving Violence): 0800 212 212
Slovenia (SOS Helpline for Women and Children): 080 11 55
Spain (Helpline for Information on Gender Violence): 016
Sweden Kvinnofridslinje: 020 50 50 50 or Terrafem: 020 52 1010
Switzerland (Dargebotene Hand):143
Turkey (Hürriyet Emergency Domestic Violence Hotline): 90 212 656 9696 or (Social Service Counseling Line): 183
Ukraine (Domestic Violence Counteraction and Child Rights Protection Hotline): 0800 500 335 or 0800 500 336
Additionally
- Afghanistan
Afghan Women’s Resource Center: +93 799 203 05 or +93 700 280 179 - Angola
phone: 260 665 9191 - Antigua and Barbuda
phone: 268 463 5555 - Argentina
phone: 11 3133 1000 - Armenia
phone: 099 887 808 - Australia
1800 RESPECT
phone: 1 800 737 732 - Azerbaijan
phone: 99 412 408 5696 - Bahamas
phone: 1 800 737 732 - Bahrain
phone: 17262237 - Bangladesh
phone: 109 - Belize
phone: 222 4343 - Benin
phone: 806 254 0376 - Bhutan
phone: (975) 2 332159/334751 - Bolivia
phone: 591 4 663 8517 - Botswana
phone: (267) 3900516/7659 - Brazil
phone: 180 - Brunei
phone: 673 340524 - Burkina Faso
phone: 226 31 30 52 - Burundi
phone: +257 22 23 53 78 - Cabo Verde
phone: 941 780 2232 - Cambodia
phone: 1288 - Cameroon
phone: 267 220 52 94 - Central African Republic
phone: 610600 - Chad
phone: 0235 66 77 50 35 - Chile
phone: 800 104 008 - Colombia
phone: 01 8000 52 2020 - Comoros
phone: 0269 773 46 63 - Democratic Republic of the Congo
phone: (267) 220 52 94 - Republic of the Congo
phone: 05 548 59 95 - Costa Rica
phone: 506 2224 3986 - Djibouti
phone: 35 04 21/35 19 81 - Dominica
phone: (767) 266-3023/3344/3083 - Dominican Republic
phone: *212 - Ecuador
phone: 098 63 62 526 - El Savador
phone: 503 2556 0032 - Eritrea
phone: 291 1 185636 - Eswatini
phone: 95 - Ethiopia
phone: (11) 124 2998/123 0777 - Fiji
phone: 3313 300 - Georgia
phone: 309 903 - Grenada
phone: 473 440 3788 - Guatemala
phone: 2285 0100/0139 - Guinea
phone: 60 28-11-89 - Guyana
phone: (592) 227-3454 - Haiti
phone: (509) 2 45 5174/4221 - Honduras
phone: 114 - India
phone: 1091 / 1291 - Indonesia
phone: (0274) 553333 - Iran
phone: 21 88 96 30 91 - Iraq
phone: 110 - Israel
phone: 1202 - Jamaica
phone: 929 9038 - Japan
phone: 092 513 7333 - Jordan
phone: 6 568 7037 - Kenya
phone: 733 594 794 - Kiribati
phone: 26187 - Kyrgyzstan
phone: 281 455 - Laos
phone: 1362 - Lebanon
phone: 6 624 060 - Liberia
phone: 919 527 0517 - Marshall Islands
phone: +692 625 5290 - Mauritius
phone: 139 - Mexico
phone: 1 800 911 2511 - Morocco
phone: (212) 2 82 64 00/01 - Namibia
phone: 081 127 1002/3 - Nepal
phone: +977 1 515 5080 - New Zealand
phone: 0508 744 633 - Nicaragua
phone: 118 - Niger
phone: 227 74 12 55 - Nigeria
phone: (234) 09091333000 - Papua New Guinea
phone: 71508000 - Paraguay
phone: 137 - Saint Kitts and Nevis
phone: 869 469 1887 - Saint Lucia
phone: 202 - Samoa
phone: 68522640 - San Marino
phone: 800 738 738 - Saudi Arabia
phone: 1919 - Senegal
phone: 221 33 941 44 11 - Seychelles
phone: 248 224 455 - Sierra Leone
phone: 240 215 - Singapore
phone: 18007775555 - Solomon Islands
phone: 677 26999 - Somalia
phone: +252 6184 72202
message on Facebook - South Africa
phone: 0800 150 15 - South Korea
phone: 136 - Sri Lanka
phone: 94 11 4 715585 - Sudan
phone: 9696 - Suriname
phone: +597 470 0380 - Taiwan
phone: 113 - Tajikistan
phone: (91) 1892 221 527/198 - Tanzania
phone: 0800 780 100 - Thailand
phone: 02 276 2950 - Timor-Leste
phone: 390 321 534 - Tonga
phone: +676 222 40 - Trinidad and Tobago
phone: 800 7283 - Tunisia
phone: (216) 7189 0011 - Uruguay
phone: 0800 4141 - Vanuatu
phone: +678 25764 - Venezuela
phone: 0800-MUJERES (6853737) - Vietnam
phone: (971) 34 36/31 43 - Yemen
phone: 1 415 814 - Zambia
phone: 1 25 52 04
These statistics are constantly shifting, which is why I don’t like to mention numbers. But if you want to know the specifics in the United States, the Hotline’s website does a good job of providing them.
*Domestic Violence Statistics – The Hotline: https://www.thehotline.org/stakeholders/domestic-violence-statistics/
Phone numbers and contact information were last retrieved as of August 2023. This does not compile all the resources available — just the ones I could find readily available.