Abusive Relationship: Get Support

Last updated: 6/15/2023

Sexual Violence Response is available 24/7/365. To make an appointment during business hours, call (212) 854-3500. For urgent or after-hours support, please call the 24/7 helpline at (212) 854-4357 to speak with an advocate.

Click here for assistance calling internationally.

If You Have Experienced an Abusive Incident

After experiencing an abusive event, it can be important to find a place where you feel comfortable and safe from harm. This location could be:

  • Home
  • Friend’s room
  • Local hospital
  • Police station

If you would like to have a survivor advocate meet or accompany you to a local hospital or New York City police precinct, call (212) 854-4357 (24/7, 365 days a year).

Call 911 for immediate police protection and assistance.

Contact Columbia Public Safety at (212) 854-5555 for assistance on the Morningside campus.

If you are being stalked or threatened, or have immediate concerns about your personal safety, Public Safety also provides a Walking Safety Escort Service.

 

Sexual Violence Response can be accessed 24/7/365 by calling (212) 854-4357. You have the option of working with a staff survivor advocate or, when available, a peer advocate. Both are confidential and certified by the New York City Department of Health to address issues of violence. They can provide crisis intervention and will discuss options for reporting and seeking medical help. They help survivors make informed decisions about their medical, legal, and disciplinary options. Advocates can accompany students to on- and off-campus resources such as hospital emergency departments, the police, the district attorney's office, and Columbia Public Safety.

To speak with non-Columbia resources, you may call any of these hotlines for assistance. These include local and national resources for survivors of abusive relationships and other forms of gender- and power-based violence.

Check for injuries; you may have injuries that you can't see or feel. Take pictures of any visible injuries.

Medical Resources

 

If you would like to have a survivor advocate meet or accompany you to a local hospital, call (212) 854-4357 (24/7, 365 days a year).

Intimate partner or relationship violence occurs in many forms and it exists on a spectrum. Abuse can be physical, sexual, verbal, emotional, financial and academic, and is usually a combination of several of these factors.

Find out if you might be in an abusive or unhealthy relationship on The National Domestic Violence Hotline website. 

The National Network to End Domestic Violence has a list of warning signs of an abusive relationship.

Still not sure where the health of your relationship stands? Explore dating fundamentals for healthy relationships.

Learn about your rights at the National Network to End Domestic Violence.

Trust your instincts: if something feels wrong, it probably is.

A safety plan includes personalized, concrete steps you can take to reduce the possibility of being harmed, whether physically or emotionally, by an abusive partner. 

A combination of factors including the different forms of abuse shape each person’s experience and impact a person’s safety plan needs. SVR encourages you to consult a Survivor or Peer Advocate to assist with developing a personalized safety plan specific to you.

You can also consult this safety plan for college students.

Always have access to your safety plan. If you cannot keep it, you can memorize the most important details on it. You can also give a copy to someone you trust.

Call a professional Survivor Advocate or Peer Advocate from Sexual Violence Response to assist you in creating a safety plan at (212) 854-4357 (available 24/7/365).

Counseling is often helpful for survivors because it provides a safe place to talk about your experience and your feelings.

Counseling Resources:

Survivors and Co-Survivors (friends, family, classmates) may choose to speak with an advocate confidentially about:

  • Legal information and options:
  • Court advocacy or assistance obtaining legal representation
  • Assistance drafting a victim impact statement
  • On-campus accommodations (housing, academic, financial)
  • On- and off-campus referrals (mental health, follow up care, healing support)
  • Understanding the sexual assault forensic examination
  • Remembering it's not your fault
  • Identifying a friend or other support person to be by your side

Visit the Coping Tools page for local and national resources for survivors of sexual assault and other forms of gender- and power-based violence.