I was raped too. Still have my PTSD and still suffer from depression. I cut myself to free the pain. And no one understands. “A small gesture can turn somebody’s situation around. Support survivors by ONLY leaving a kind and thoughtful comment.”
“Shame is the lie someone told you about yourself.” Anais Nin (attributed) If you were a victim of childhood sexual abuse, you know about shame. You have likely been plagued by it all your life without identifying it as shame. You may feel shame because you blame yourself for the abuse itself, or because you …
When I was in secondary school I had few friends in my circle (boys and girls), we were about 10 and we did everything together; party, told each other secrets, etc… Well, fast forward to when I finished my NECO examination, I was about 15/16 years old; I met someone through my friend, her elder …
For survivors of trauma, past experiences don’t always stay in the past. Flashbacks are vivid, often distressing memories of past traumatic experiences. They may come as intense images, sounds, smells, physical sensations, emotions, or sometimes, a numb or disconnected state. These episodes can feel as though the trauma is happening all over again, even when …
It was a Sunday evening, I was returning home from visiting my girlfriend. I boarded a taxi from town to my junction. After a brief ride, the passengers alighted and the last one paid the driver in dollars. I was shocked on seeing that, we were in Nigeria, who pays for anything in dollars let …
Big things can grow from little routine changes. Taking care of yourself isn’t all manicures and “treating yo’self,” don’t cha know? When you break it down, self-care is about ensuring your most basic needs are being met. And that (literally) takes time. Sometimes, looking after your most simple, human needs—the eye-roll inducing, obvious ones—is harder than it seems. …
The Secret To Practicing Self-Care When You Have No Idea Where To Start Read More »
While all forms of victimization are traumatic and life-changing to any gender, survivors of male childhood sexual abuse have the greatest challenges. Much of the literature on sexual abuse and trauma focuses on only women as victims. This isn’t an accident, there are also countless resources for female survivors dealing with trauma from sexual abuse …
On the Road to Recovery – How Male Sexual Abuse Survivors Can Heal Read More »
So I was in secondary school and had no sexual experience. I read harlequin, mills, and boons, and all but those were just novels. My parents had handed me over to my principal to be my guardian, he would do bible studies with me and give me books to read since I was an avid …
When I was in high school, I had a boy over at my house when my parents weren’t at home, which was definitely against house rules. We were just hanging out, doing whatever kids do, when the phone rang. I picked it up in the kitchen, gesticulating wildly to the boy to be silent so …
Anonymous Story: Part Of Me Is Still Lying On That Kitchen Floor Read More »
Being a trauma survivor is a challenging journey, but it is also an empowering one. Trauma acts as the catalyst for us to learn how to better engage in self-care and introduces us to endless modalities for healing and expressing ourselves, enabling us to channel our crisis into our transformation. Most importantly, it gives us access to …
5 Powerful Self-Care Tips for Abuse and Trauma Survivors Read More »
