Dr Caleb Lack is a friend of mine and all-round good bloke. Indeed, I edited a number of his books, including Psychology Gone Astray: A Selection of Racist & Sexist Literature from Early Psychological Research (buy it!). He is heavily involved with a really worthy organisation called The Secular Therapy Project that has just revamped its website. Check out the details of the organisation below:

The Secular Therapy Project, under the direction of Dr. Caleb Lack and Dr. Darrel Ray, is proud to announce the completion of a completely redesigned and updated website and database, available online at seculartherapy.org. The purpose of the Secular Therapy Project (STP) is to help connect non-religious or secular persons who need mental health services with outstanding mental health professionals, such as psychologists, psychiatrists, counselors, and others. Over 10,000 clients have connected with hundreds of therapists to obtain needed and effective mental health treatment since 2012. The upgrades to the database include faster, easier searches and the ability to specifically search for distance therapy; an improved messaging system for clients and therapists to communicate with; new and improved applications for therapists who wish to join the Secular Therapy Project; and the expansion of the STP database to allow therapists from around the world to join.

The STP is unique compared to other therapist-locator sites in that it is not just a database of providers. Instead, they very carefully screen potential therapists who want to become part of the STP. All therapist applicants are screened to ensure that a) they are appropriately licensed in their state or country, b) that they are secular in nature as well as practice, and c) that they actually use evidence-based treatments, which have been shown to be effective at helping improve mental health problems in controlled clinical trials. This means not only do therapists from the STP not try to preach to or convert clients, but that they are also using the most well-supported types of treatment available.

“These changes will improve access for existing clients and allow people globally to find the best mental health care that they can,” said Dr. Lack, director of the Secular Therapy Project. “Now even more non-religious people can be confident that their therapist will be practicing ethical, evidence-based therapy rather than being worried about being judged due to their lack of religious belief.”

A number of information technology specialists donated hundreds of hours of their time in the first major upgrade since the site went live in 2012. Chief among these was David Klinge, who took the project to completion over the past nine months. Also contributing to the early development were Daniel Ashcraft and Clayton Flesher. “I can’t even say how grateful we are to David and everyone else for all the hard work they put into this project,” Dr. Lack said. “They freely gave of their expertise and time to help others, and there is no way this would have happened without them.”

The Secular Therapy Project is a program of Recovering from Religion. Recovering from Religion (RfR) is led by Executive Director Gayle Jordan and provides practical support and resources to individuals reconsidering the role of religion in their lives. Founded by Dr. Darrel Ray in 2009, RfR is unwavering in its commitment to provide immediate, compassionate support for individuals anywhere along the spectrum of doubt via work like The Helpline, which gives 24-hour support, and local support groups which provide community and a listening ear for the questions and frustrations that accompany what is often a seismic change in thought process, attitude, and outlook. To learn more about the Secular Therapy Project, contact Dr. Lack.

Recovering from Religion is hosting Thanks-for-Giving, a livestreaming, first-of-its-kind, fundraising extravaganza! Live interviews will feature Shelley Segal, Peter Boghossian, David Fitzgerald, Mandisa Thomas, Callie Wright, and many more secular activists. We are also auctioning off valuable prizes and holding drawings for books and convention admissions. The audience will be able to view the event via facebook live on our facebook page and interact Awith event hosts and guests on our monitored social media feeds on facebook and twitter.

Thanks so much to Aron and Lilandra Ra for this promotional video!