Name.

I was 42 when I was able to safely escape from my abusive husband. It's never too late to begin again. You're not too old. Freedom from violence is a basic human right. I hope my story will show victims and survivors of every generation that the abuse was never their fault.

#1113

I love you all out there!
You are not alone!
You are strong!
The abuse is not your fault!

12 year old sex abuse survivor of sex abuse in west virginia, summer of 1979

to those out there that maybe going through the same thing out there that i went through, just know that you are not alone, i beleive you, and please go seek out some professional help like i did i have been seeing a councelor since date because of my p.t.s.d. that i was diagnosed with, please do not think that you can handle this yourself because you cannot, it eats away at you peice by peice i know because when i came clean to my mother about being raped by my brother ricky and his girlfriend name back in date, back in date w...

Name

Acceptance of personal space and keeping unlearning people away, as a means of not giving second or third chances cause change is internal and external and requires a managing.

Name

Healing is something I once assumed was a quick fix. Nov 2022 I was assaulted and raped - I was in denial and running off a mixture of fear and adrenaline until Nov 2024; where my body literally shut down for 2 weeks.
I've over eaten. I've over drank. I neglected myself. I self-harmed. I attempted to take my life multiple times. All of which most would disapprove of especially as i often continue with no.3&4 to this day. Yet, it kept me alive.

Life in

Ladies/Gents,
Getting out is THE HARDEST DECISION you'll ever make and it's the scariest thing I've ever done.
I hope that everyone can get out safely, rebuild, refocus and heal.

#1497

A childhood filled with shame

For a long time I hid behind the shame of what happened to me. It took a long time and some therapy before I was able to speak about my childhood. Growing up in a chaotic home due to parents that were addicts made it easy for me to be hurt. I always thought that somehow it was my fault. I don’t remember every part of what happened but the pieces that I can recall are unsettling. I have memories of an older cousin showing myself and two other cousins different parts of his body as a child. I knew it was wrong and from what I remember, most of i...

Name

I was in an abusive relationship for 3 years. I left several times but it wasn't until police intervention that I finally ended things, and even then it took an additional year to fully understand that I had been an victim of domestic abuse. It started small, I would make excuses for him and the love bombing and manipulation made me thing it was a small price to pay because what we had was so specials. As things escalated I could not admit to myself that I was a victim that I had let myself allow these things to happen. Someone like me with l...

4 times is a hell

I thought that sexual assault victims had it easier in usa or in Europe. Easier than us in Middle East and arabic gulf countries but i was so ashamed when i realized that sexual assault is hard anytime anywhere.
I was sexually abused by two of my cousins , once from a stranger worked in nearby Deli and the fourth time by my private tutor . I was only 13 years old first two times , 15 in the second time and 18 in the fourth. and here in Middle East if it’s happened to you and tell your parents and family there is only two scenario either your...

Breaking Free: Escaping a Narcissist's Grip

Healing is to realize that it was not your fault.

Abuse Has Many Forms

It is not your fault. You are strong and capable. Love does not hurt.

Loving all of yourself- the gateway to healing

Healing has meant taking care of that little girl, rather than dissociating from her. Reintegrating her experience with love and allowing myself to feel the pain that I had suppressed for so long. It meant not having to "be strong" anymore. Holding those adults accountable for their actions, even if just in my heart. They could've done better and didn't. That's their burden to bare and not mine.

Insidious abuse that's hard to understand

I am still working to be healed. I'm want to be listened to, I want to be believed, I want to be free from abuse and I want my child to be safe and free from abuse.

We all have broken places, but we are not broken

What happened to you is not on you, it's on them. It's a part of your story but it is not your whole story. You are stronger than you think you are.

a light in the dark

Healing is so important. it's putting yourself first and knowing that nothing and no one is worth dying for. there is no replacement for you. You are a shining light in the dark that is so unique. Healing is finding out how important you are and finding your strengths and teaching and giving to others. Finding yourself your strength is so beautiful and it's needed more than we can ever truly understand.

TURNING WOUNDS INTO WISDOM

Healing is using my pain to help others. No matter how long it has been or what stage you are in, there is help out there. Resources and non-profits that care in a country that seems like it doesn't. Now more than ever we most reach out and support one another.

Evil lives here……

Whatever it is your facing you are not alone there is millions of us so have hope that it will one day get better

11989

I have to be hopeful that one day it will all be over. But I need to act.

#1460

This is long but I need to tell my story. I have to get it out of me.
Almost 2 years ago my whole world was flipped upside down.
My ex husband had had a couple of emotional affairs earlier in our relationship. I tried seeking therapy. His mom told me it wasn’t necessary at that time. Just a bump in the road. He was physical with me as well. I tried asking for help but I was afraid. I stupidly listened to his family and hid the truth from my own because I didn’t want them to worry. I had sacrificed years of my life, burned myself out, and com...

#1456

There is something to be said about coercive convincing. Sometimes people can make an outwardly uncomfortable situation very appealing or just generally ok. It’s easier to fall trap to that when you know the person, think you know the person, have heard good things about the person from others you know, or you allow your curiosity to take over your instincts. You must learn to trust your gut. Don’t silence it. Be ok with their discomfort. You, your health, mentally and physically, are more important.

The shattered glass that opened my eyes. By Name

I just filed a protection order in January. I have held on because I saw the hurt child within my partner and so it was easy to rationalize why he had negative behaviors.
The last straw was when he apparently didn’t want me in the garage so he kicked over tools that were stored in totes and picked up an Axe and shattered a mirror. He looked at me while holding the Axe and I just retreated and created space because I didn’t want to create a reason for his anger to escalate any further.

The monster

Don’t give up, get help, speak up.. you deserve a better life

I love myself more, but I want a safe and calm outing

I am trying to leave this DV relationship, but it's complicated. He lives with me; he uses my phone and car because he doesn't have neither. I don't want to get the police involved nor do I want to kick him out, 1. he will just be outside my apartment unit and 2. defamation of my character - for some reason everyone believes him and don't see any wrong by him but he sure can make someone look terrible.

I learned the hard way, but I survived! I’ll be smarter and stronger going forward!

I can say that it does get better as time goes on. You learn to live with what happened it’s something that takes time. Don’t rush yourself everyone’s healing journey is different but having support and the right people in your inner circle helps. Also talking about it when you are ready can help get it out so that you’re not holding it in and not processing it. And some days will be better than others but even the bad days are progress. Don’t tear yourself down or blame yourself! You are stronger than you know! You are powerful! A SURVIVOR, T...

In the Shadows: A Story of Survival and Healing

For years, I lived through something no one should ever have to go through. It started when I was young, and the person who hurt me was someone I was supposed to trust, my stepfather. He was supposed to protect me, but instead, he took advantage of me in the worst way.

FREE

Healing is hard. Realization is harder. Realizing that the man I thought loved and cared for me was a delusion. Realizing that I held onto the good times to ignore the worst times. Realizing that I changed who I was in order to keep the facade of who he could be. It hurts. But I am alive. I am here to pick up the pieces that he shattered.

Its a long road and story but you can make it.

Healing is knowing and loving yourself despite what you may internally hear. Its setting boundaries and listening to them. Its feeling your gut and following it.

Name

Learn to forgive. Don’t carry the anger you had because it will break you. Part of that is also learning to like who you are. Easier said than done for sure, but worth the effort. Counseling was extremely helpful and I still use some of the skills my counselor taught me. You were victimized, it’s not your fault.

A SURVIVING VICTIM’S STORY - Name

A SURVIVING VICTIM’S STORY - Name
I was four years old when upon hearing my parents’ raised voices, I peered around our living room corner, a silent spectator to my dad’s hand connecting with my mom’s face, propelling her into the air and onto our Danish Modern coffee table. Upon impact, the table and my petite mother broke into pieces. That night, my fix-it father repaired the table. I didn’t know it then, but my mother was forever broken. Although my older brother didn’t witness this one-sided match-up, he certainly heard them arguing,...