Sex Crimes: The Recovery
By: Chelsea Rarrick
Updated: February 29, 2012
Eyewitness News has been taking a deeper look into sex crimes in Central New York.
A big part in a sex crime is recovering from the traumatic experience.
Counselors say sometimes the hardest part after a traumatic experience like a sex crime is just asking for help.
Meghan, who doesn't see herself as a victim, but as someone who decided to take that brave step toward recovery, shares her story.
"You have flashbacks, you have triggers, triggers that will send you into a flashback," said Meghan.
2008 was the year that would forever change Meghan's life. While everyone was celebrating the new year, she had to deal with the trauma of being raped.
"I remember when it initially happened. If I was out in public driving to work or whatever, I felt like everybody knew....and I had to keep telling myself, they don't know, they don't know, but it's the kind of irrational thoughts that you have," she said.
A few days after the January rape, Meghan came forward to authorities.
But, it wasn't until a couple of months after, that she decided to take the next step and seek much needed counseling.
'Talking about this for the very first time can be extremely difficult, and usually they're not necessarily going to say what has happened," said Counselor Support Group Coordinator at the YWCA, Deborah Humphrey.
"I felt like not talking about it almost made it seem like it didn't happen, that it was just a bad dream and I needed to talk about it because I needed to feel that it was something real that happened," said Meghan.
Humphrey says just making that first phone call is beginning the recovery process.
She says it's important for people to know they can speak freely without the fear of being judged.
"So often what happens is, with victims of abuse, sexual abuse in particular, they can feel people are seeing them in a different way because they see themselves in a different way," said Humphrey.
Primary Therapist in Herkimer County, Ashley Piersall, says there are no cookie cutter steps in the road to recovery.
But to begin the process, there has to be trust.
"When someone is a victim or survivor of a traumatic experience like that, their trust is absolutely broken....They may start to question themselves. Who am I? What am I? Why did this happen to me?" said Piersall.
Along with learning to trust again, Meghan has found ways to cope with what had happened.
"I spent a lot of time on my own. I got to know myself better than I ever did. I needed to feel comfortable in my own skin again. I needed to feel comfortable in my own body," she said.
Although that day in January will always be in her memory, Meghan says she's learned things through this process that made her who she is today.
"Life doesn't stop because you were raped. It goes on, and you're either going to be a part of it, or not. I was not going to all him to have that control over me anymore," she said.
A big part in a sex crime is recovering from the traumatic experience.
Counselors say sometimes the hardest part after a traumatic experience like a sex crime is just asking for help.
Meghan, who doesn't see herself as a victim, but as someone who decided to take that brave step toward recovery, shares her story.
"You have flashbacks, you have triggers, triggers that will send you into a flashback," said Meghan.
2008 was the year that would forever change Meghan's life. While everyone was celebrating the new year, she had to deal with the trauma of being raped.
"I remember when it initially happened. If I was out in public driving to work or whatever, I felt like everybody knew....and I had to keep telling myself, they don't know, they don't know, but it's the kind of irrational thoughts that you have," she said.
A few days after the January rape, Meghan came forward to authorities.
But, it wasn't until a couple of months after, that she decided to take the next step and seek much needed counseling.
'Talking about this for the very first time can be extremely difficult, and usually they're not necessarily going to say what has happened," said Counselor Support Group Coordinator at the YWCA, Deborah Humphrey.
"I felt like not talking about it almost made it seem like it didn't happen, that it was just a bad dream and I needed to talk about it because I needed to feel that it was something real that happened," said Meghan.
Humphrey says just making that first phone call is beginning the recovery process.
She says it's important for people to know they can speak freely without the fear of being judged.
"So often what happens is, with victims of abuse, sexual abuse in particular, they can feel people are seeing them in a different way because they see themselves in a different way," said Humphrey.
Primary Therapist in Herkimer County, Ashley Piersall, says there are no cookie cutter steps in the road to recovery.
But to begin the process, there has to be trust.
"When someone is a victim or survivor of a traumatic experience like that, their trust is absolutely broken....They may start to question themselves. Who am I? What am I? Why did this happen to me?" said Piersall.
Along with learning to trust again, Meghan has found ways to cope with what had happened.
"I spent a lot of time on my own. I got to know myself better than I ever did. I needed to feel comfortable in my own skin again. I needed to feel comfortable in my own body," she said.
Although that day in January will always be in her memory, Meghan says she's learned things through this process that made her who she is today.
"Life doesn't stop because you were raped. It goes on, and you're either going to be a part of it, or not. I was not going to all him to have that control over me anymore," she said.
