Sexual Abuse Counseling
Statistics are high for individuals who have been sexually abused. One in four females and one in six males have been sexually assaulted. Females are more open about having been sexually abused whereas men bury the shame and guilt and are not open about what has happened to them. In addition, men have a misperception there is no impact if the offender was an older woman and see this as an accomplishment.
Many victims do not come forward out of fear of not being believed. Most victims were not believed until the 1970’s when rape crisis centers began being established town by town. Today victims are believed more and offenders are prosecuted. However, there are many victims out there who are adults who have never addressed what happened to them and are still haunted and carry the guilt and shame.
There are stages an abused person will go through in their life. Children in the “unaware” stage of development lack the cognitive ability to understand what is being done to them, and cooperate out of fear in order to make sense of why they are being sexually violated. They do not understand that cooperation is not consent, therefore not understanding the sexually inappropriate behavior of the offender. People in the “unfortunate” stage re-examine what was done to them and develop a new perspective and experience intense humiliation. Then victims experience the “uncomfortable” stage. In the uncomfortable stage victims experience anger, rage and/or defiance. They believe they are bad and behave in ways to match their belief about themselves.
The adult stage of development is the “unresolved” stage. Anxiety, depression and low self-esteem manifest itself. The impact of what happened to them is internally observed. If you would like help to resolve having been a victim of a sex crime, please contact Janet NekooasL, a professional North Carolina counselor serving North Carolina and South Carolina areas.
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