SA story from me
So starting at the young age of 9 I was sexually assaulted by a girl I looked up too. Me (9 year old female) her (was 15). I was young so at the time I didn’t know much and she would threaten to hurt me if I told anyone so I pretty much kept to myself. At the time I was living with my ex stepmom (30 y/o female). At one point I tried to tell mom but the other girl had ended up stopping me and tried to choke me to death so I couldn’t tell she got in trouble for choking me and I got taken home mom just simply blamed the girl for choking me on her “issues”. This continued on up till I was 15 I spoke up to mom and she told me it was my fault and that it was mutual, even though I told her the most recent assault was a week ago and I was 15 the girl was 22. I finally made the choice to live with my dad. Mom was mad because she always had something against my dad but I was of age and could chose who to live with and since “mom” wasn’t my real mom she couldn’t stop me. The girl went to jail but got released on bail after just 4 hours in a cell even though I had to live for 6 years in silence about what I was going through (I was also taking care of my 3 year old brother day and night before and after school). It took a year to finally learn to cope and little with my trauma and then I was SA’d again at the age of 15 by a 17 y/o male who has yet to receive punishment. It makes life 100% harder and little things trigger my trauma like a shirt, jacket, or necklace being to tight on my neck. I’m still learning how to cope and I have nights I cry myself to sleep due to overthinking.
HELP YOURSELF:
- Thank you for reaching out to Teen Central about this really sensitive topic.
- THERE IS HOPE AND HELP! It sounds like you need help right away, there are many ways that you can get help. You can always call 1-800-273-8255 or text HELLO to 741741 or call 1-800-4-A-CHILD (1-800-422-4453). Even if you feel you cannot call, each of these numbers has a website that you can use too – http://www.crisistextline.org/ or http://www.childhelpusa.org/.The other option you have is to call the police – 911. Someone is always ready to listen and try to help.
- We really do think it’s important for you to try and trust someone professional in your life to tell them what is happening to you. What happened to you is absolutely NOT OK. Please think of someone that you could tell – even if it’s not a family member, it could be a neighbor, friend’s family, guidance counselor, teacher, or even a spiritual or community leader. Regardless, we urge you to seek professional assistance to navigate through what happened to you. You may also be able to find a local chapter of Crimes Victims Council. You may also find some use in this resource: About RAINN | RAINN
WHEN YOU’RE READY:
- If you struggle to talk about what has happened and your feelings about it, there are other ways that you can express yourself. Journaling, art, and even writing a story about the situation are great ways to tell your story. We have a lot of information and guides about these skills under our Tools tab. Also, you can look in to our WHAT’S NEW section for information about the Art Journaling as a Coping Skill for Stress, and Journaling to Cope with Stress. Finding balance within yourself helps to calm and ease the mind for more clear thoughts and action planning. Consider deep breathing, meditation, mindfulness, being around animals, going for walks, or even yoga and exercise.
- Above all, consider finding a way to keep doing things that help you take care of you. It can feel really difficult to take your mind off of the abuse, but taking care of ourselves is an important part of coping with big stress. Consider spending at least 10 minutes a day doing something that gives you peace and makes you feel calm. It could be taking a walk, taking a few deep breaths, doing some artwork, listening to your favorite music, playing a sport, really anything that you enjoy.
- Most importantly – please remember that you have an ally in TeenCentral. Thank you for continuing to visit us. We support you.
