Sexual violence affects people in different ways. Some people’s brains block it out completely. (This is one way our brains work to keep us safe!)

Sometimes we block it out for years and then it comes back when we feel safer or more equipped to deal with it, or because something else happens that reminds us of unresolved trauma.

Some of us spend our lives feeling on edge, hyper-focused on protecting ourselves (and others). This is another way our brains try to keep us safe.

Surviving sexual violence can affect the way we show up in relationships, for ourselves, and in the world. None of these ways are right or wrong, but sometimes things that helped keep us safe in the past are no longer useful at other points in our lives. If you think past sexual trauma is affecting your life now and you’d like to explore healing, contact me.

I have been working with survivors of sexual violence for 15 years in different capacities. I started by volunteering on a rape crisis hotline, and then worked as a hospital advocate, supporting survivors in the hospital immediately after an assault. I’ve worked as a victim advocate through the legal system, and for the past 10 years have been providing therapy to survivors. If you have been searching for someone who gets it, you’ve come to the right place.