Recovering After Being Raped

Former Member

I'm frightened of men and suffer from violent PTSD attacks. Right now, I feel completely lost and don't know how to recover.

Can anyone offer any advice or relate to my experience?

Former Member

Hi @BlossomBabyBunny

Firstly, thank you for being brave enough to share your problem with us - it means alot.
Talking about our problems can be a huge help and often a first step on the road to feeling better.
Whilst I do not have any direct advice, might I suggest visiting https://rapecrisis.org.uk/
I feel they could really offer some great professional advice.

I hope this has helped

Laura_tigger82

Hi @BlossomBabyBunny

Thanks for reaching out to us. I always appreciate how much courage it must take to reach out

In addition to the wonderful advice provided by @dante96, I just want you to know that people are here for you and care about you.

That includes us, Childline, and Samaritans. We are all just a message or call away and we are listening

I am wondering if you have spoken to your GP about your struggles with PTSD?

They might be able to offer some long-term counselling if that is something you would feel comfortable with

I am sorry to hear you are experiencing such a tough time. I am sending you virtual hugs!

Past User

The user and all related content has been deleted.

AislingDM

Truly, thank you so so very much for talking to us here. I cannot even begin to imagine how much constant pain you are in right now, and so the fact that you were able to take the time to post today is beyond amazing and brave Being put through such a devastatingly awful experience like that must have been indescribable and unbearable and so it is no wonder that you are suffering so much right now, especially from the PTSD and being intensely fearful of men. I want you to know that these responses are beyond understandable and you have nothing to feel ashamed of at all, responding to this type of trauma is like living with constant grief that you can never turn off, especially when PTSD symptoms won't let you forget about it. I want you to know that you in no way deserve what happened, and that you deserve the best in life, not such anguish. Feeling completely confused, turned around and uncertain is so so reasonable, after experiencing such a severe trauma, it's hardly like life would just go back to normal for you, no matter how hard you try.

i can tell from your post that you are desperate to be able to move on and cope with what has happened in a way that works for you, and you truly do deserve to find this. I know there have already been suggestions of a lot of wonderful support services, which is just fantastic and I urge you to look into those if you can muster even the tinniest bit of energy right now. I also wanted to mention 'WomenKind' and the Survivors' Trust https://www.thesurvivorstrust.org/about-sexual-violence

In particular the latter provides some really awesome support services which cover support for mental health, physical health, social support, legal aid and many other things.

Aside from professional services such as the ones which have been mentioned, there are also support networks such as https://twitter.com/survivorslib which aim to provide survivors of sexual assault a space to speak with one another and share each others' pain to hopefully heal over time. Many people say that speaking to others who can relate to their experience has been transformative to their recovery and I hope The Mix can help to bring this to you too

Finally, I want you to know that you have done an amazing thing by choosing to be open with us all today, and for this I will be eternally grateful. I wish for you to find happiness and peace in this life and that overtime you can come to feel okay again, as you deserve all this and so much more. Remember give yourself time and space to heal xxxxx

AislingDM

Just wanted to check in to see how you're doing at the moment @BlossomBabyBunny ? I can't even begin to imagine how you're feeling right now, so take as much time as you need to reply if you want (no pressure). Please know we are always here for you, whether that's for advice, to vent or just for some space to talk about nothing in particular. Huge hugs xxx

ellie2000

i didnt recover nd life draging on and on, u need to hav the right doctor and the right proffessional therapist

Laura_tigger82

Hey @ellie2000

I am sorry to hear you are struggling. Please never forget we are always here for you if you ever need anything! Always listening to you. I hope you receive the support you need and deserve soon but we all appreciate the complexities around this

Former Member

ellie2000 wrote: »

i didnt recover nd life draging on and on, u need to hav the right doctor and the right proffessional therapist

I've tried to get help from my doctor. They've put me on a higher dosage of anti-depressants. I'm getting very little support for my mental health conditions, I'm diagnosed with Depression, Generalised Anxiety, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Anorexia Nervosa and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Former Member

AislingDM wrote: »

Just wanted to check in to see how you're doing at the moment @BlossomBabyBunny ? I can't even begin to imagine how you're feeling right now, so take as much time as you need to reply if you want (no pressure). Please know we are always here for you, whether that's for advice, to vent or just for some space to talk about nothing in particular. Huge hugs xxx

To be honest, I'm not doing too well. I've started turning to sex and alcoholism to cope with the rape. I've been sleeping around as a way of coping. Recently, I slept with this guy. It was consensual. During sex, he lightly strangled me and I performed oral sex for the first time since being raped. This took me back to when my rapist strangled me and forced me to perform oral sex. Everything that I and this other guy did was absolutely consensual. It just freaked me out. So many things reminded me of the night that I was raped.