Sexual violence

Being sexually abused as a child by someone outside your family

Sexual abuse during childhood by a teacher, coach, religious leader, neighbor, family friend, or anyone else who was not family. Often someone who was trusted by the adults around you.

The people who do this choose trusted positions on purpose, which is why so many survivors were doubted or told it was impossible. Whether they were charming, respected, or beloved by everyone around you changes nothing about what they did. You were a child. The entire weight of what happened belongs to the adult.

What can follow an experience like this

No two people carry the same experience the same way. These are some of the effects that people with this experience often describe. Having some of them, all of them, or none of them says nothing about how real what happened to you was.

PTSD After certain experiences, the brain can get stuck, replaying what happened through flashbacks, nightmares, or sudden intense reactions to things that remind you of it. Hypervigilance The nervous system that learned to scan for danger all the time. Trust issues Trust that was broken, repeatedly, by people who were supposed to be safe. Insomnia Difficulty falling asleep. Depression Not just sadness. Shame Not guilt about something you did. Anxiety The background hum of dread that is always there. Dissociation Dissociation is what the nervous system does when what is happening is too much to stay present for.

Nothing on this page is a diagnosis, and nothing here decides what is wrong with you, because nothing is wrong with you. Something happened to you. This page exists so that when you are ready, you can find people who understand it from the inside.

You do not have to carry this alone.

Bridge of Hope Recovery is a free, anonymous, peer-led fellowship for trauma survivors. Meetings run throughout the week by phone, by video, and in person. No cost, no waitlist, no one asking for your real name.

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