If you or a friend has been assaulted.
The first thing you should know if you were raped or sexually assaulted is that It was not your fault.
If you or a friend has been assaulted.
The first thing you should know if you were raped or sexually assaulted is that
It was not your fault.
1. The first thing you can do after being assaulted is call a crisis counselor at 1 800-656-HOPE (4673) in the USA. Local hotlines can be found by state or zip code hera.
Call 911 if you are in danger now. If you are reporting a rape you should ask the local crisis center for a victim’s advocate who will walk you through the process. For information on Reporting a rape click here.
2. Please read advice on what to do immediately after being assaulted which includes: Write down all the details you can recall, find a safe environment and preserve evidence of the attack (don’t brush your teeth or shower).
3. The next step would be to seek medical attention and have a rape kit done. It is important to make sure there is not a pregnancy (emergency contraception prevents this) or an STD. Urine samples determine whether there is a date rape drug in your system. The sooner you have these tests done the better. You can find local rape crisis medical services at medline, in a search engine or in the phone book.
4. If you choose to report the assault to the police it is important that you have a victim’s advocate.
5. Studies have found that victims who had advocates with them during the police interview had a better overall experience. The advocate can also walk you through the entire legal process.
The most important thing to know when reporting is that you need a victim’s advocate from your local rape crisis center. Some other aspects to consider are:
“Survivors who had the assistance of an advocate were significantly more likely to have police reports taken and were less likely to be treated negatively by police officers. These women also reported less distress after their contact with the legal system. Similarly, survivors who worked with an advocate during their emergency department care received more medical services, including emergency contraception and sexually transmitted disease prophylaxis, reported significantly fewer negative interpersonal interactions with medical system personnel, and reported less distress from their medical contact experiences.” (Campbell, 2006)
The officers will likely ask why the victims waited to report. Common factors are:
Fear of reprisals,
Not being able to identify an assailant,
Anxiety ahout having own conduct scrutinized.
Undeserved guilt combined with embarrassment
Victim/self-blaming (Frasier, 2006) more
Ways to get a better conviction rate:
Emphasizing the psychological impact of the attack on victims through a victim’s impact statement.
When writing the victim impact statement consider the four injuries: physical, financial, social and emotional.
You have the right to ask for information about
The course of the proceedings
Victim’s rights throughout the proceedings
Support available in case of threats by the perpetrator
Confusing legal language
Psychological counseling
“One of the basic rights of crime victims granted under victim-orientated legislation introduced during the last 20 years in more than 100 countries worldwide is the right to be referred to victim support by the police.” (Winkel et. al., 2004)
Steps in reporting:
Since the order and procedure varies by location it is a good idea to ask your local rape crisis center.
“For victims, the experience of reporting rape falls into several different stages. Depending on the circumstances of the case, some of the stages may overlap, some may be omitted and the order in which they occur may vary but broadly speaking they are as follows [in the UK]:
(i) Contacting the police
(ii) First encounter with the police
(iii) The medical
(iv) Making a statement
(v) Investigation of the case
(vi) Follow-up
(vii) Court ” (Temkin, 1999)
Immediately After an Assault
In the first few days and weeks following the assault, it is very normal to experience intense and sometimes unpredictable emotions. She/he may have repeated strong memories of the event that are difficult to ignore, and nightmares are not uncommon. Sex victims also report having difficulty concentrating and sleeping, and they may feel jumpy or on edge. While these initial reactions are normal and expected, some women/men may experience severe, highly disruptive symptoms that make it incredibly difficult to function in the first month following the assault.”
If it becomes severe acute stress disorder symptoms are:
“Feeling numb and detached, like being in a daze or a dream, or feeling that the world is strange and unreal
Difficulty remembering important parts of the assault
Reliving the assault through repeated thoughts, memories, or nightmares
Avoidance of things (places, thoughts, feelings) that remind the woman of the assault
Anxiety or increased arousal (e.g., difficulty sleeping, concentrating, etc.)” According to NCPTSD
Many rape victims also suffer from:
PTSD , RR-PTSD and rape trauma syndrome (RTS)
OCD
DID
Eating Disorders, research
Self Injury
Self blame
Panic attacks
Flashbacks
Memory and ptsd
Body memories
Sleeping disorders
Physical symptoms
Pregnancy
Most rape victims are suffering from Rape Related PTSD which may make the victim feel very disoriented.
At this stage victims may do or say things which aren’t logical. While it’s important to make a victim feel that they have regained control over their life and decisions, victims often have great difficulty functioning after an assault.
It is crucial that the people around them educate themselves to:
Recognize the immediate symptoms and Help victims get treatment.
“Survivors who had the assistance of an advocate were significantly more likely to have police reports taken and were less likely to be treated negatively by police officers. These women also reported less distress after their contact with the legal system. Similarly, survivors who worked with an advocate during their emergency department care received more medical services, including emergency contraception and sexually transmitted disease prophylaxis, reported significantly fewer negative interpersonal interactions with medical system personnel, and reported less distress from their medical contact experiences.” (Campbell, 2006)
The best ways to reduce feelings of shame are:
Making the person feel normal within society
Helping them join a support group (being accepted by a community as normal) and
Helping them take control of their life through therapy and pro-active healing.
“Two main styles of emotion were shown by the victims within the first few hours after the rape: expressed and controlled. In the expressed style. the victim demonstrated such feelings as anger, fear and anxiety. They were restless during the interview, becoming tense when certain questions were asked, crying or sobbing when describing specific acts of the assailant, smiling in an anxious manner when certain issues were stated. In the controlled style, the feelings of the victim were masked or hidden, and a calm, composed or subdued affect could be noted. “
Journal articles
Schnurr PP. Friedman MJ. Bernardy NC. (2002). Research on posttraumatic stress disorder: epidemiology, pathophysiology, and assessment. Journal of Clinical Psychology. 58(8):877-89.
How you can help a sex victim
If you are wondering what you can do, here are some
suggestions:
• Remain calm. You may feel shocked or outraged, but
expressing these emotions to the victim may cause
confusion or discomfort.
• Believe the victim. Make it clear that you believe the
assault happened and that the assault is not her or his
fault.
• Give the victim control. Control was taken away during
the assault. Empower the victim to make decisions about
what steps to take next, and try to avoid telling her or him
what to do.
• Be available for the victim to express a range
of feelings: crying, screaming, being silent, etc. Remember, the victim
is angry with the person who assaulted her or him
and the situation, not with you. Just be there to listen.
• Assure the victim of your support. She or he needs
to know that regardless of what happened, your
relationship will remain intact
• Avoid making threats against the suspect. Threats of harm
may only cause the victim to worry about your safety and
risk of arrest.
• Maintain confidentiality. Let the victim decide who to tell
about the assault.
• Encourage counseling. Give the victim the hotline number
for the nearest rape crisis center, but let the victim decide
whether or not to call.
• Ask before offering physical support. Asking “Can I give
you a hug?” can re-establish the victim’s sense of security,
safety, and control.
• Say what you can guarantee. Don’t make promises you
can’t keep, such as saying the victim will never be hurt
again, or that the offender will be put in jail.
• Allow the proper authorities to deal with the assault.
Confronting the person who committed the sexual assault
may be harmful or dangerous. Attempting to investigate
or question others who may know about the assault may
hamper a legal investigation. Leave this to the proper
authorities.
• Be patient and recognize that healing can take years with
advances and setbacks.
• Take care of yourself. If you need support for yourself,
please contact your local rape crisis center for a
confidential place to discuss your feelings
Each survivor reacts to sexual violence in her or his own
unique way, such as:
• Expressing emotions or preferring to keep their feelings
inside. Talking about the assault soon after or waiting
weeks, months, or even years before discussing the
assault, if they ever choose to do so.
• Experiencing physical responses to the trauma as an
effect of the assault.
• Developing coping mechanisms that could be harmful
or unhealthy such as drug and alcohol use or self-injury,
or healthy and therapeutic options such as journaling,
expression through art and seeking therapy. Some
survivors will display a mix of healthy and unhealthy ways
of coping.
It is important to respect each person’s choices and style of
coping with this, and any, traumatic event. You can help by
offering to connect victims with the services of a rape crisis
center where staff are experienced in dealing with the effects
and responding without judgment. Whether an assault
was completed or attempted, and regardless of whether it
happened recently or many years ago, it may impact daily
functioning. A wide range of reactions can impact victims,
both immediately after the assault and for days or years after
the assault. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, injury or other short- and longterm effects have been reported by 81% of women and 35%
of men who experienced rape, stalking or physical violence by
an intimate partner
