There are many ways that one can experience sexual trauma. It can be a one time experience or a series of events that occur over time. You have survived a violation of the soul. It is often the case that the event of trauma occurs with a person who you know, though the traumatic experience does happen with strangers. If you have been pressured sexually, threatened if you did not engage, sexually harrassed or threatened or embarrassed, touched without consent you have been sexually traumatized. The trauma may not have been associated to a physically violent experience, yet you can be left feeling emotionally violated. If after having been involved in a situation that took away your sexual choice, you feel a sense of helplessness, anxiety, a threat of being hurt again, or have a perception that you will be hurt again then you are coping with emotional reactions that are related to that incident.
What you might feel:
Appetite changes, depression, hyper-vigilance, PTSD,(if reaction is longer than 3 months) daymares/ nightmares, memory loss, blurred vision, poor concentration, deficit in attention, despair, numbness, shock, anger, rage, anxiety, headaches, sleeplessness, exhaustion, substance abuse, argumentative, sexual functioning shifts (hypersexual or hyposexual), paranoia, social withdrawal
If you are reading this, then you are a SURVIVOR. Each person responds to trauma in their own way. Like your fingerprint, which is yours and only yours, you will have your own way of coping with surviving a traumatic experience.
What is the process?
To help you feel that you have control in the process of your healing is one of the most important aspects to feeling less anxious. Creating safe places within your mind to calm and self-soothe when memories take over. Change the negative thinking by using guided imagery, EMDR, conversation, dream work, gestalt techniques and cognitive behavioral therapy to counteract the symptoms that stop you from living fully. Step into the powerful sense of being. We work to help you detach from the role of victim so you can be the victor in the healing of your soul and your psyche. I will collaborate with you to create an internal support system that enables you to take care of the wounded self with compassion. Ultimately, the goal is for you to find a sense of safety in your life.
HINT: Begin the healing process by acknowledging that whatever emotions you feel are ok: They will not hurt you. Take them in and care for them instead of denying them or beating yourself up for their very existence. When you think about the traumatic event, be kind to the psyche and your soul. Stop thinking about what you could have done, and think about what you can do to heal yourself now!