A word from far away, for a feeling from home.

Saudade is Portuguese — the ache for a home, a person, a time that isn't where you are. We honor the word and its origin, because our language has its exact twin: sevdah. Both carry the same weight: you can build a whole life abroad and still carry a place inside you. That feeling is not an illness. But when life abroad does get heavy, you should be able to talk about it in the language it happened in.

What we are

Saudade Therapy is a nonprofit initiative building a free directory of independently vetted therapists who work in Bosnian, Croatian, and Serbian, for the millions of people from the former Yugoslavia living across Europe and North America. Free means free: no commissions, no subscriptions, no ads, no trackers. Therapists keep 100% of what they charge; clients pay them directly; sessions never pass through our systems.

Why it's needed

The need is documented, not assumed. Long-term studies of ex-Yugoslav war refugees settled in Germany, Italy, and the UK found high rates of mental-health conditions many years after resettlement — and research on access keeps finding the same first barrier: language. In Germany, it is estimated that only about one in seven refugees who need psychotherapy receives adequate treatment. Meanwhile the second generation carries its own themes — identity between two countries, and what the family did not talk about. At the same time, qualified therapists who speak our language exist, in the region and across the diaspora. What's missing is a trustworthy, free bridge. That's the whole project.

How the nonprofit works

• No money flows through us. We connect; we never bill, process, or take a cut of therapy.
• Trust is the product. Our published vetting methodology — registry checks, interview, transparent credentials, annual re-verification — is the reason to use us over an open listing.
• Privacy as a duty. This site sets one functional cookie, loads nothing from third parties, and runs no analytics scripts. A mental-health site should be the last place anything watches you.
• Sustainability, honestly. The pilot runs on volunteer work and near-zero infrastructure cost. If that ever changes, the options we would consider — donations, grants, optional paid conveniences for therapists — all keep listing free and none of them will ever influence search results.

Where we are now

This is the pilot: we are assembling and vetting the founding cohort of therapists and a notify list of future clients. The public directory opens in late 2026. If you want to help beyond that — translation, clinical review, community organizations, or funding — write to us.

Transparency note: the legal entity (nonprofit association) is being registered; this page will carry its register number, statute, and funding disclosure. Until then, the imprint lists the people responsible.

Saudade Therapy is not a crisis service. If you are in danger or thinking about harming yourself, find a crisis line for your country — they answer immediately.