Sexual trauma may be violent, or it can be non-violent; it can be a singular event or a number of events over a period of time. Sexual trauma can be rape, inappropriate touching, and undue pressure to commit to a sexual act or a threat of harm if you do not perform a sexual act. Violent sexual assaults are the minority; most assaults have no violent over-tones but are committed under the threat of harm. Sexual trauma is when the affected individual feels a sense of fear, helplessness or injury.
The common reactions:
The reactions that a person feels change over time. When the assault first takes place it is only normal to have feelings of fear, sadness, physical reactions such as nausea and changes in sleep patterns. These reactions can last many weeks or months before a feeling of being normal again returns. If the feelings persist, the victim may be suffering from PTSD, post-traumatic stress syndrome, and it is recommended that professional care is sought.
A few of the more common reactions are; confusion, memory loss, shock, sadness, headaches, interrupted sleep and irritability. There are many more.
Regardless of what the symptoms are, they are all normal responses to what is an abnormal happening.
What can the victim do?
The first thing the victim of sexual trauma must do is feel safe. If a current relationship feels insecure, or you feel unsafe at home, then getting into a different environment is imperative. If you are in an abusive relationship, call the authorities.
Physical safety is very important; however, emotional safety is equally important. If you find yourself self-mutilating, going on binges or abusing alcohol or drugs, you must seek mental health care before you begin to undertake the care needed to overcome the sexual trauma. If you feel as if you have lost control, it will be very difficult to work on the trauma issues.
To feel better, as a victim you must first acknowledge that your thoughts are OK; it helps to validate that you had such a traumatic experience. There is no need to think that you should have known better nor is there any reason for you to think you should have or could have done something different. It is easy to “Monday morning quarterback,” but unfortunately, all this insight is missing while the assault is taking place.
Try to be around others during this hard time. You may feel like hiding, but don’t. Get out with people that you love and love you back, family and good friends. Engage in the activities that you enjoy, even if you’re not in the right mood for them. Getting back into the normal swing of things will help you with overcoming this terrible event.
Sexual trauma is a horrible thing to have to endure; feelings of guilt can be overwhelming. The professional mental health care personal at University Behavioral Health, El Paso are well positioned to help you thought this time.
