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The Possible Impact of Rape and/or Sexual Abuse

There are many ways in which you can be affected by sexual abuse, rape or assault. Some of these can be short-term, however there are many effects that can be much longer-term. Everyone reacts differently to a traumatic event and it is recognised that abuse, rape and assault can have a profound effect.

Short-Term: These can include physical or/and emotional effects.. You may be bruised, sore, have cuts or other injuries to deal with. It can be important to get certain symptoms such as vaginal discharge, pelvic pain checked out, The Sexual and Reproductive health service in Ninewells hospital offers a confidential service. A support worker from the Centre or perhaps a friend could go with you for support. You do not have to tell them that you have been raped/assaulted that is your choice, however it ma be helpful. You may also have fears and concerns about pregnancy, speak to someone you trust, perhaps your GP, a Family Planning Clinic, WRASAC. If you are pregnant you may find it helpful to speak about all the options that are available to you, you can do this at the Centre with one of our support workers or by contacting Alternatives (Provide pregnancy and post-abortion support) http://www.careconfidential.com/Dundee (01382) 221112

You may feel overwhelmed by what has happened or not want to think about it, try and get on with your life and forget it. You may find yourself going over and over what happened in your mind, perhaps trying to make some sense about what has happened. You may feel to blame, angry, ashamed or may be even thinking about taking your own life. We believe that no woman deserves to raped or sexually abused. Long-term You may still be experiencing nightmares, have difficulty sleeping and/or have recurrent flashbacks. You may feel you have no confidence, be unable to trust yourself or others, feel worthless, be afraid to go out, afraid of others, hate yourself, feel angry, dirty, ashamed, depressed, upset and/or tearful. You may find that you are having relationship or sexual difficulties or be unsure about your sexuality. You may be trying to cope by, self-harming / injuring e.g. cutting, burning, scrubbing using drugs and / or alcohol, bingeing, vomiting and/or starving yourself.

You may feel overwhelmed to the point you are thinking about taking your own life. Speaking to one of our trained support workers about feelings like this can be hard, however many women when speaking about feeling suicidal often say that it isn’t that they want to die just that they want the feelings and emotional pain to stop.

It may be that you have been diagnosed with depression, post-traumatic stress, borderline personality disorder. However we recognise that these can be the long-term result of the trauma you have experienced.

You may have found that you were able to cope with what happened very well, you may have been able to put it to the back of your mind, pretended it didn’t happen. Sometimes though it is not until a year, 5 years, 10 or even 30 years later that it starts bothering you. This is quite normal, a life event (Birth of child/death of a parent) or something else may have triggered things for you.

Would speaking help? No matter how long ago you were abused, your feelings about what happened to you are important. You have the right to be listened to, no matter what you want to say. Speaking about how you feel and how this has affected your life may help you to come to terms with what has happened. The Centre offers telephone, letter, e-mail, support groups and one-to-one support. WRASAC can be contacted via our Helpline. There is a 24 Hour answering machine with details of our helpline opening times, if you leave a message we would get back to you discreetly and as soon as possible. One-to-one support can be arranged at a time suitable for you and your support worker/s. Further information about our services can be found on our website.

Quick Links - Useful Information
Child sexual Abuse - Rape and/or Sexual Assault - Impact of rape and/or sexual abuse
-Information for family and friends- Information for workers - Flashbacks - Personal Safety - Police and Courts - Possible signs of child sexual abuse - Ritual Abuse - Self-harm - Sexual Harrassment at Work - Suicide -