Christian Psychotherapy Services

reported to board of psychology for sexual abuse

I strongly advise you to seek help from any other mental health provider than Christian Psychotherapy Services (CPS). My therapy there was among the worst experiences of my life. Years ago, four women reported Page Huff, the president and founder of CPS, to the Virginia Board of psychology. In their complaints, they stated he had engaged in sexually inappropriate behavior with them. I was one of those women. Since my experiences with Page, I have suffered from post traumatic stress symptoms. Please keep in mind that if four people reported him, I’m sure many more victims exist who did not file complaints. In addition to the sexual abuse reports, Page was also reported to the board for billing fraud. Following are some details regarding my experience with Page: When I was younger, I was suffering from depression and anxiety and was struggling to live independently. My parents allowed me to live with them on the stipulation that I must go to Page for treatment because it is a Christian treatment center. Previously, I had been going to counseling with the preacher at my church, but unfortunately, he had become sexually inappropriate. Therefore, during my second session with Page, I told him I would rather see a female therapist, but Page refused to refer me to a female. His justification was that I would feel rejected. I told Page about the problems I had experienced with my preacher, but Page was dismissive about those experiences, and that issue was never addressed again. I was having difficulty holding a job, and Page also dismissed that problem by saying, “I think you just don’t want to work.” (I did manage to stay continuously employed during my treatment with him, however.) I tried to address some abusive experiences I had suffered at the hands of my parents, but Page also dismissed those incidents. He never explained whether he believed the instances were irrelevant or whether he didn’t believe me. I was always uncomfortable with Page and had difficulty talking to him. He would frequently become angry with me, accusing me of trying to make him angry on purpose. In fact, I was twisting myself into knots trying not to anger him. He never set any goals for therapy with me, and I never understood what we were supposed to be doing or what I was supposed to talk about. He once said to me, “Are you going to say anything, or are you going to sit there with that stupid look on your face?” In one instance, he brought his lunch into the room during my treatment and ate while I was trying to talk to him. Twice, when I was severely depressed, he told me he would call later to see how I was, but he never called. As treatment continued, he began integrating hugs into my sessions, and he told me I could come in anytime for a free hug without an appointment. During a session I had with him on my birthday, he offered a birthday hug then unexpectedly grabbed one of my breasts and forced a kiss on me, sticking his tongue in my mouth. I think he expected a positive response, but when he did not receive it, he stepped back and said, “Nothing happened.” He then dismissed me from the session (His children were playing in the lobby area, and his wife was working the receptionist desk during that time). Afterward, he terminated my therapy. I eventually reported Page to the board of psychology. It was then a board member informed me that several other people had filed complaints against Page, and these women had reported that Page had engaged in far more extensive sexual acts with him than he had engaged in with me. After reporting Page to the psychology board, I talked about my experience with him to a counselor and a preacher at the church I was attending. Apparently the counselor and preacher knew Page, and they told him what I had said. Page told them I had lied, and I was subsequently barred from the preacher’s office. I found out later Page had told those people and others I had sexually assaulted him (!) (I also later discovered Page had been training the counselor with whom I had spoken.) Meanwhile, the psychology board notified me that a hearing date had been set. Before the hearing, Page arranged to have a notice hand-delivered to my parents. The notice stated Page had subpoenaed the people to whom I had spoken at the church, and they were going to testify at the hearing. He also subpoenaed the preacher who had been sexually inappropriate with me. I was no longer living with my parents, so I assume Page sent the message to their house to cause problems among my family and to intimidate me, so I would not attend the hearing. However, I did attend, and the people Page subpoenaed also showed up. At that point, Page withdrew from the hearing and entered a plea of “no contest.” To this day, I don't know why those people were subpoenaed. Afterward, Page’s lawyer sent me a notice stating Page would pay me $600 if I would not sue him. Because I was too young at the time to know better and had no one to advise me, I signed the agreement. I now know I could have sued Page for major bucks. When I was seeing him, I had no insurance, so my parents had paid him the full price out of pocket for each session. We lost about ten thousand dollars. I am now completing a master’s degree in counseling, and I can assert that Page was completely incompetent and did almost nothing correctly concerning my treatment. In addition to everything else, I later discovered later he had misdiagnosed me. The only positive outcome from this travesty is I am now an atheist. If this review has encouraged even one person to seek help from a more reputable practice, then my effort writing it has been worthwhile. (Edited February 14, 2018)