Adult Behaviors

You can stop Treatment for people who struggle with harmful or abusive sexual behaviors is available. If you are motivated to stop abusive behaviors and to get specialized treatment, you can learn to change your behaviors and live a healthy, fulfilling, and productive life. Having the support and...

Stop It Now! has a confidential toll-free Helpline (1.888.PREVENT). If you are concerned about your sexualized thoughts or behaviors towards children, you can call the Stop It Now! confidential, toll-free Helpline at 1.888.PREVENT (1.888.773.8368). No caller ID is used on this line. Get access to...

Danger of the Internet People can get in trouble before they even realize it. When it is so easy to access sexually explicit materials on the Internet, users can find themselves acting on curiosities they didn’t have before. Some people find themselves losing control over their use of pornography,...

Get help before you act on your sexual thoughts or feelings towards children. Even though it may be hard to tell someone you are having sexual thoughts or feelings towards children, it will be much harder to get help after you have harmed a child. Find someone you can talk with about your feelings...

There is no such thing as a “typical sex offender.” It can be hard to understand how seemingly ordinary people can have sexual thoughts or behaviors towards children. There is also no usual “pathway” to becoming someone who sexually abuses children. People who sexually abuse children can be any...

Every situation is unique. Reacting to a child’s disclosure of sexual abuse with the right amount of appropriateness, care and sensitivity is not easy. No one ever does it perfectly. And if, in addition, the person committing the abuse is someone we love, the sense of betrayal makes it more complex...

"I am a survivor worried about a situation where a child may be at risk." You have valuable instincts that can help prevent abuse If you are concerned about the safety of a child, we encourage you to trust your gut feelings. Sometimes vague feelings of discomfort or the sense that “something just...

For protective adults, a wide range of emotional reactions are possible Following a disclosure, reactions can vary greatly for non-offending parents and other protective adults. You may feel surprised by some of your thoughts and feelings and might find it difficult to share them with others. Below...

Now is the time to seek help. If you know someone who is having sexual thoughts about children or who feels sexually aroused by a child’s presence, this is the time to seek help. It is important to that they take steps now to keep themselves from being sexual in the presence of a child. With...

Not knowing what might happen next makes it hard to reach out for help Sometimes people who have been sexual with children are afraid to reach out for help because they don't know what might happen to them or their family. Child sexual abuse is a crime and must be dealt with through the child...