Last updated: April 24, 2026
This Privacy Policy explains how Feel Validated, Inc. ("Feel Validated," "we," "us," or "our") collects, uses, shares, and protects information when you use our website at feelvalidated.com and related services (collectively, the "Service"). This Policy applies to all users of the Service, including prospective therapy clients ("Clients") and licensed therapists listed in our directory ("Therapists").
This Policy should be read together with our Terms of Service. By accessing or using the Service, you consent to the practices described in this Policy. If you do not agree, please do not use the Service.
When a therapist joins the Feel Validated directory, we collect information they provide during the onboarding process, including:
This information is used to build and verify the therapist's public profile on the directory. Therapists may request corrections to or removal of their profile at any time by contacting us.
When a prospective therapy client uses the Service to search for a therapist, we collect minimal information:
Search queries. When you use our AI-assisted search tool, your search query is transmitted to our AI provider (Anthropic) for processing. We do not store raw search query text. We do not associate search queries with your identity. We may collect anonymized, aggregated search analytics (such as the number of searches performed or general topic categories) to improve the Service.
AI-generated match explanations. When you click "Why this match?" on a search result, the brief explanation text generated for that result is logged along with the therapist's ID and a timestamp. We do not store your search query itself, but explanations may reference or imply concerns from the query when describing the connection to a therapist's work. We use these logs to monitor the quality of our search and to improve the explanations our system generates. Logs are retained for 30 days and are not associated with user accounts or IP addresses.
No account required. Clients are not required to create an account, log in, or provide any personal information to search the directory or view therapist profiles.
When you visit our website, certain information may be collected automatically through standard web technologies:
We use the information we collect for the following purposes:
We do not use personal information for advertising, marketing to third parties, or behavioral targeting. We do not sell personal information.
Therapist profiles are public by design. Information displayed on a therapist's profile (name, credentials, areas of focus, practice location, therapeutic approach, verification status) is visible to anyone who visits the directory. Therapists consent to this public display when joining the directory.
We share information with the following service providers who assist in operating the Service:
| Provider | Purpose | Data Accessed |
|---|---|---|
| Anthropic | AI-assisted search query processing | Search query text (not stored, not used for model training per API terms) |
| Web3Forms | Form submissions (therapist join flow, feedback) | Form field contents including name, email, and message text |
| Cloudflare | DNS, CDN, Workers (search API), R2 (document storage) | Web traffic data, uploaded credential documents, search API requests |
| Netlify | Static site hosting | Standard web server logs (IP, user agent, pages visited) |
We do not share personal information with any other third parties, and none of our service providers are authorized to use personal information for their own purposes.
We may disclose personal information if required to do so by law, regulation, legal process, or governmental request, or if we believe disclosure is necessary to protect our rights, the safety of our users, or the public.
Our search feature transmits your query to Anthropic's API for processing. Under Anthropic's current API terms, search queries submitted through the API are not used to train Anthropic's models and are not retained beyond the duration of the API call. Feel Validated does not store raw search query text.
When you click "Why this match?" on a search result, our system generates a brief explanation describing how that therapist's work connects to your search. The text of this generated explanation is logged for 30 days so we can monitor and improve search quality. Although we do not log the query itself, explanations may reference or imply concerns from the query in describing the connection to a therapist's work. Explanations are not associated with user accounts or IP addresses. See Section 1.2 for additional detail.
Search queries may contain sensitive personal disclosures (such as descriptions of mental health concerns, relationship issues, or traumatic experiences). By using the search feature, you acknowledge that this information is transmitted to our AI provider for the purpose of generating matches. We strongly recommend that you not include identifying personal details (such as your full name, address, or other personal identifiers) in search queries.
Client search queries: Not stored. Queries are transmitted to Anthropic for real-time processing and are not retained by Feel Validated or Anthropic after the API call completes.
AI-generated match explanations: Retained for 30 days, then automatically deleted. Logs include the explanation text, therapist ID, and timestamp; no query text, account ID, or IP address is logged.
Therapist profile data: Retained for the duration of the therapist's active listing on the directory. If a therapist requests removal, their profile data is deleted within 30 days.
Credential documents: Verification documents (certificates, transcripts, training records) uploaded by therapists are stored in Cloudflare R2 with access controls limiting visibility to authorized Feel Validated personnel only. Documents are retained for the duration of the therapist's active listing to support ongoing verification. If a therapist leaves the directory, their credential documents are permanently deleted within 90 days of profile removal.
Form submissions: Data submitted through Web3Forms (therapist join requests, feedback) is retained by Web3Forms per their data retention practices and by Feel Validated in email records for operational purposes.
Web server logs: Standard web server logs (IP addresses, pages visited) are retained by our hosting providers per their respective retention policies, typically 30 days.
Feel Validated is intended for use by adults (persons aged 18 and older) who are seeking therapy for themselves or on behalf of a minor in their care. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under the age of 13 as defined by the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). If we become aware that a child under 13 has provided personal information, we will take steps to delete such information promptly.
We use the following types of cookies and similar technologies:
We do not use advertising cookies, retargeting pixels, or any tracking technologies that follow you across other websites. We do not serve ads on the Service.
You can control cookies through your browser settings. Disabling essential cookies may impair the functionality of certain features, such as the search tool.
We implement reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to protect the information we collect from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure. These measures include:
No method of transmission over the Internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. While we strive to protect personal information, we cannot guarantee absolute security.
Regardless of your location, you may:
To exercise any of these rights, contact us at jacob@feelvalidated.com.
If you are a California resident, you have additional rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA):
Right to Know. You may request disclosure of the categories and specific pieces of personal information we have collected about you, the categories of sources, the business purpose for collection, and the categories of third parties with whom we share it.
Right to Delete. You may request that we delete personal information we have collected from you, subject to certain exceptions.
Right to Correct. You may request correction of inaccurate personal information.
Right to Opt Out of Sale/Sharing. Feel Validated does not sell or share personal information as defined under the CCPA.
Our AI-assisted search tool uses automated processing to match client queries with therapist profiles. This processing generates ranked search results and match explanations. These results are informational only — they are not clinical recommendations, and they do not result in any decision that produces legal or similarly significant effects on any individual. Clients make their own independent decisions about which therapist to contact.
Feel Validated is a directory and informational service. We are not a healthcare provider, health plan, or healthcare clearinghouse. We do not provide therapy, process insurance claims, or maintain treatment records. We do not collect or store Protected Health Information (PHI) as defined by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
Search queries submitted by clients may describe health-related concerns. However, these queries are not associated with any personally identifiable information, are not stored, and are not used for any purpose other than generating immediate search results. They do not constitute PHI under HIPAA.
Therapists listed on the directory are independent practitioners responsible for their own HIPAA compliance in their clinical practice. Feel Validated's role is limited to displaying verified professional credential information.
In the event of a data breach involving unencrypted personal information, Feel Validated will notify affected individuals in accordance with California Civil Code § 1798.82 and any other applicable state or federal breach notification laws. Notification will be made in the most expedient time possible and without unreasonable delay, consistent with any measures necessary to determine the scope of the breach and restore the integrity of the system.
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Material changes will be indicated by updating the "Last Updated" date at the top of this Policy. If we make significant changes to how we handle personal information, we will notify affected users (therapists with active listings) by email. Your continued use of the Service after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the revised Policy.
If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, want to exercise your privacy rights, or have concerns about how your information is handled, please contact us at:
Feel Validated, Inc.
jacob@feelvalidated.com