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Welcome to Our Wave.

This is a space where survivors of trauma and abuse share their stories alongside supportive allies. These stories remind us that hope exists even in dark times. You are never alone in your experience. Healing is possible for everyone.

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Story
From a survivor
🇺🇸

Father Daughter Incest I should have stopped

It is with great shame that I confess here. I was a passive enabler of abuse. I had been molested as a girl by an older boy in grade school and should have been less of a coward. I finally turned in my husband and ended his incestuous abuse of his own daughter. I deserve the tears I cry. I was a swing shift nurse and usually slept like a rock with my pill. That night I got out of bed after a few hours and wandered past the kitchen to the other side of the house where my stepdaughter room was. It sounded a little like crying, or laughing.  It was hard to tell what was happening at first though the cracked door on the other side of house. My stepdaughter's room. But soon I made out that my husband was kneeling and leaning forward over the bed with his head between his daughter's spread legs. The noises were panting and squeaking from him performing cunnilingus.  This quickly concluded and he took a position lying in bed and although her body was mostly blocked because she was on the other side of him from the door, It was evident that she was giving her dad fellatio. Her head was rising and falling and he had his hand on her head. She was only nine! I left  and went back to bed, wanting to forget what I had seen. Why not talk to him and stop it right away? I should have. But my husband had lost his wife only a few years before, and my step daughter had lost her mother.  The woman had been paralyzed below the waist and had severe back pain.  She took her own life two months after the injury, days after being discharged home from the hospital. There was a lot between them because of their loss that I could never be a part of. The idea that sexual contact was a means of grieving did not sit well with me but I did not want to make waves.  It seemed voluntary on her part. I loved my husband. It had taken a long time to find him after much hoping and dating and heartache and searching. So maybe I was selfish for wanting to keep my husband. I did not know if it happened very often. I turned a blind eye..   For at least a year and a half I did not get out of bed if I woke up in the middle of sleep time. Then on a Friday night, after I had worked a night shift and stayed up to run errands during the day, then attended my stepdaughter's dance recital where she performed ballet, jazz, and hip hop with her troop, I crashed. But I got up, restless. This time the door to her bedroom was closed and probably locked, lights on from below.  The sounds of my stepdaughter in the throes were loud enough that I went out the back door and around to the window, and stood up on the central air unit to see through the large gap in the curtains.  I had a direct view of my esteemed husband, who is quite good to me, up on his knees on the bed, pumping back and forth. His daughter was bent over in front of him with her bare posterior in the air, down on her elbows.  I could see him moving in and out of her and shaking her whole body with his thrusts.  I felt sudden anger.   I regret that my anger was not about what it should have been about. My anger was jealous anger.  Thoughts of my thirty-four year old body and how it could not compete with the firm adolescent body I saw before me, and that we had watched this beautiful curve-developing girl while holding hands with my husband as she danced in different outfits. I was a little jealous then, not even knowing that he was thinking of her, that way. I kept watching him sex her, unable to consider looking away. He slowed his thrusts and collapsed on the other side of her. I saw her shiny body collapse too. Her breath was so deep and fast. They took a couple minutes to recover and I got more upset when I thought my husband was going to fall asleep with HER. But he got up, talking. He dressed and walked around the bed. She got up, seemingly at his command and they hugged, standing up. He smiled at her and turned toward the door. Only then was the spell broken and I hurried back to the door and went in. He was already showering. I never said anything and let it fade, pretending I did not think about it often. I was more passionate and adventurous with my husband, and colder with my stepdaughter.      A couple years later when I found her crying in her room one day while my husband was out of town, I went in to comfort her. It got around to me mentioning her sexual relationship with her father in an accusatory way. She broke down even farther and told me about how she asked him to stop when she started 8th grade. She had become aware how “crazy” it was and begged him to stop if he loved her. He told her he couldn’t stop because he loved her. Something snapped inside me and I helped her fall asleep and then drove to the police station. I turned myself in and my husband. It was very messy and my life has been since. But I don’t regret it. I only regret waiting five years to end a marriage that I should have ended after five months. I deserve all the tears.

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  • Story
    From a survivor
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    Survivor

    My name is Survivor and I live in Huntsville, TX. In 2004, at the age of 15 I was introduced to a man who was a pedophile. This was just after my parents divorced and after growing up with a severely abusive father, I was desperate from male leadership in my life. Needless to say, I was an easy victim. This man began grooming me and would eventually begin molesting me. This happened once or twice a month for the rest of my high school. Little did I know, this man was working alongside a college ministry called Chi Alpha and the Assemblies of God for at least 2 decades and had already molested other boys. For which he served a mere 90 days in Alaska jail. Pastors in our ministry tried to convince students, many of whom who were victims, to write letters of lienance on behalf of the abuser. You would think after high school and turning 18 I would have moved on and left him. After all, why would anyone continue to let themselves get abused? Unfortunately, that’s not how grooming or the mind of a victim works. So, I’m sad to say, the abuse continued. When I was abused in 2005, the statute of limitations in Texas at that time were until the age of 23. At the age of 23, I was still being molested by this man. For a significant amount of time the leadership in the Assemblies of God, which was the denomination I had been apart of my whole life, knew that this man was a registered sex offender and did not take needed steps to rid our ministries of him. I was one of the first victims to publicly come forward in 2023. For nearly 20 years I told no one, not even my wife. Myself and 5 friends, some even pastors in the Assemblies of God, started making calls to friends figuring other men had been abused heard dozens of stories of abuse because we were trying to help over 40 victims get help, seek justice, and heal. We all watched in horror as NDAs were used to insulate organizational leadership to cover themselves, using the NDAs as a fog of ignorance and hiding behind it. Because of this, Justice has not been served. Since then the Assemblies of God has tried to dismiss valid civil claims of negligence, has sidelined victims in the investigation process, and has sneakily tried to get victims to sign NDA’s. I’ll also add that I am a high school teacher here in Texas, and every year I hear stories from students who have been sexually harassed or abused in all kinds of scenarios. The happy side of my story is the abuser is currently in jail and awaiting trial. My wife and I have a rule in our house with our kids - no secrets. Last night I talked to my 8 year old daughter (in kid language) how NDA’s are used. And she said “but if you keep it secret doesn’t that bad person keep hurting children?” I had the privilege of working with Elizabeth and everyone involved with Trey’s Law. It helped my healing so much to be able to meet and talk with other survivors. To hear their struggles and to know I wasn’t crazy or alone. Through that legislative process I found my voice and gained confidence in sharing my story. Thank you Elizabeth for helping me tag along!

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  • You are surviving and that is enough.

    Story
    From a survivor
    🇮🇪

    Because we were married…

    I’m sharing here because I hope I can reach out to other women who may have gone through marital rape or may still be going through it and I want you to know you are not alone. For years I felt as if I was asleep as I couldn’t face up to what was happening to me, why I was losing weight and why I so depressed. I minimised everything, even to him. I would try and make him feel better afterwards. Most of the time it was as simple as me saying no to sex and him doing it anyway while I was completely disconnected, and it was so often, I would lie there and wait til he was done most of the time, but each thing built up to him pushing the boundaries further, sometimes when we were out in public, always after I went out with my friends, it was part of the deal. I always told myself he’d be in better form if I just went along with it. He was always so stressed and so angry. And I loved him and sometimes I enjoyed sex with him. It made things very confusing in my head. And I was eating barely anything, which he encouraged, he was constantly buying me exercise equipment and sexy outfits. I kept getting sick, I was tired and low all the time. My family and friends were saying I wasn’t myself. There were 3 incidents that I play over and over in my head that I couldn’t minimise (although I tried). And they led to me telling him our marriage was over. That was a year ago. I thought it might help me to write one of them down and maybe someone will identify with me and it might help them. It was at his best friends wedding and as usual, he wanted us to do something exciting sexually. So we went to the men’s toilets. We were kissing and we started to have sex. I was quite drunk. All of a sudden he turned me around and bent me over the toilet, my hands on the window sill. I started to say no. It came out in what sounded like a little girls voice. I don’t know why I remember that so well. I don’t know why I didn’t shout. He raped me anally in the men’s cubicle and I was crying looking at a dirty window sill and I could hear strange men outside commenting. Afterwards I kept asking why did you do that, I didn’t want that, it hurt me, you were too rough, I said no. But he he didn’t want to talk about it. He left me sitting with one of his male friends that I didn’t know to go outside with his best friend and have cigars. He saw I was in pain and bleeding for days after. I stayed with him for years after that. Other things happened after that too. I ended up feeling like his stress ball, a rag doll, good for nothing else. I was with him since I was 18 years old and we have children together. He was all I knew. He was my husband and I loved him. No one knew what was happening. Everyone thought we were a couple in love. It wasn’t until I told him I couldn’t share a bed with him anymore and I was starting ti have panic attacks that we went to a marriage counsellor and it all came out. I woke up. It was her face. Her reaction. I felt so stupid and embarrassed. And he tried to explain it away to her shouting at her that he was a man. I was sitting there thinking how did I let this happen to me? I always saw myself as quite a strong, intelligent, bubbly person. I’m in my 40s, I should know better. I was looking at the counsellors face and it somehow didn’t feel as if it was happening. I realised I was shaking and she was worried about me and he was shouting at her. I felt so embarrassed and helpless. And stupid in front of another grown woman. I was thinking what if this was someone I loved telling me this happened to them? But still in my head I kept thinking its not really rape because he was my husband, and I loved him and so many times I wanted to have sex with him so how could it be rape. But why did he want to hurt me? I kept thinking this couldn’t be happening to me. Anyway thanks for reading. I hope it helps someone. I feel it helped me to write it down.

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  • If you are reading this, you have survived 100% of your worst days. You’re doing great.

    Story
    From a survivor
    🇺🇸

    Name

    While working at my long-time job, I met this guy. He seemed friendly and after we started talking, the one phrase he kept saying was, "we're just friends." I know now that that phrase is not real. He started by stalking me while giving the quick little "hi, how's it going?" Then the stalking got to be more, like watching my schedule, where I would be and when. But it didn't feel like stalking, because we were "just friends." Small conversations started to get to be longer conversations. Eventually, we were talking every day. And soon we began texting after work. He inserted himself into my life. Then the sexual flirting started. Of course I did join in, because we were "just friends." At the time, I was helping take care of my elderly grandmother and my mom, that had cancer and was an alcoholic. My father could only do so much on his own with my mom. I was also married with a toddler grandchild. Life was busy and stressful. He was easy to talk to. He let me say whatever I needed to say. I would ask him questions about his life and the answers were short or unbelievable. I thought he was always being sarcastic. It never felt like a real answer. When I would question him, he would simply walk away. Now, I do need to say, I am not innocent in all of this. I could have simply walked away, told him to leave me alone. But I didn't...that's where I went wrong... He would say comments to me about bathing my grandma or mom or cleaning my parents' bathroom. The comments I will choose not to put in here because they are disgraceful and disgusting. Nobody should ever say those comments. When he would say these things, I would tell him to stop. He would smile and repeat them. I, again, asked him to stop saying them. Then he would drive away on his forklift. You see, he was a different department than I, so we both had to make time to talk to each other. He would call me princess. I asked him to stop. I would be walking weird one day because of the arthritis in my lower back. He would ask if I had my "John Wayne" walk going on that day. I'd say no, I'm in pain. Please stop saying that. He would say he worked out every day after work. Then proceed to make a muscle with his bicep. He would say "feel that, I know you want to." Because we were "just friends" and flirting, I would. I would ask him for hugs, because we were "just friends." He would, but only if nobody was around. He would constantly tease me, or "raz" me as he said in the injunction hearing. I would ask him to stop on many occasions. I never reported him to my HR department, because we were "just friends." I should have... There were two occasions that he sexually assaulted me as well. To touch him, remember I asked permission. He didn't have permission to touch me. I had to wear a walkie talkie as part of my job. It was hang on my right side back pocket. Once, he came out of the receiving office (his department) and said "it was too loud to yell to get my attention" so he smacked my radio antenna. I turned around and said "what he hell!" He then proceeded to start up a conversation. The second time, I was walking away, after talking to him, I was pushing a large dumpster, and he went to hit my ass, but got the antenna again. I turned around and gave him a dirty look. I had talked to him for almost 3 years. The last comment that made me finally break came shortly after my car accident. I was hit in the rear corner panel of my husbands' car. The accident was my fault, I know this. The air bags went off. I was simply not paying attention and wanted to get home. I injured my right hip, whiplash, and my pride was very much damaged. But I went to work the next day. He knew about the accident because I texted him a few hours later, because we're "just friends." Of course, I'm limping around and trying to take it easy. I had a physical job at the time. At one point during the day, while taking the garbage and cardboard to the compactors, he said to me, "your ass have a cute wiggle when your hips hurt." I turned around and gave him a dirty look and kept walking. I didn't ask him to stop. There was my second mistake... That was October. Little by little after that I started to limit talking to him. He wouldn't stop saying the crude comments, even though I did participate in some admittedly. I did ask him to stop repeatedly on several other sexual comments. By the end of November, I was no longer talking to him. He had cornered me at one point towards the end of us talking, after my car accident, to say "he did nothing wrong. Why aren't we talking as much?" I told him "I'm working on my marriage." He then proceeded to say, "whatever. You know where I'll be. You know how to find me." We didn't talk or text anymore after Thanksgiving. By the time January came, I couldn't take it anymore. I felt scared constantly, I was in fear for my life (he said some comments about taking his "wife" if she won't give him sex), I was having anxiety attacks driving to work every day. I simply couldn't be near or around him anymore. I finally reported the ass wiggle comment to my supervisor. For the next 7 months, my life got turned upside down. My employer only made the perpetrator be off for three days while they investigated. Nothing was done, except we were both told to stay from one another. The whole time talking with the perpetrator, I was drinking very heavily. Many conversations were forgotten. I would remember details periodically. I would tell them to HR. Nothing was done. I wanted him moved to another plant or fired. My employer refused. I was so scared of him that I got a restraining order. It was granted. My employer then moved him to a different department, but still in the same building and the same hours. I still heard his name constantly. I was starting to develop PTSD. After telling HR the many comments he said, the times I said no, stop it, knock it off, and all the information I gave them, they still wouldn't protect me. I was missing work because I was afraid of him, my marriage was falling apart, and I felt like my employer just wasn't on my side. Finally, 8 months after I first talked to my supervisor, he was fired. But by then, I was a complete wreck. I was being watched, I didn't feel comfortable, and my work was suffering. I had to leave my job. I worked for this company for one month shy of 23 years. My father retired from there after 46 years. I had been a part of this company since before I was born. It was where I was supposed to retire from... But I couldn't let my mental state of mind get betrayed and feel like I'm a nobody. I got a different job and quit. To this day, I still have PTSD. I don't like crowds. Men scare me. And we're still working on our marriage, 3 years later. I'm still going through hell, all because "we're just friends..."

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  • “I have learned to abound in the joy of the small things...and God, the kindness of people. Strangers, teachers, friends. Sometimes it doesn’t feel like it, but there is good in the world, and this gives me hope too.”

    Story
    From a survivor
    🇺🇸

    #1438

    He acted like he's the most active and honest guy. Gossiping or telling me the people we know mutually are not a nice guy or ppl who treat women like a toy. He told me other guys are looking other women to judge their looks and body shapes. He constantly told me he's not that kind of guy but you were still friends with them. He told me the other guys are talking about women's underwear colors they saw. I should have known that you are not different with the ppl you told me. He once told me he had a one night stand which I didn't like hearing but I tried to understand him because that happened a year ago before I met you. The pandora's box opened when I saw a photo album from his phone. He took an intimate photo of me without my consent and he didn't tell me he had it. I had a weird feeling so I scrolled up the album and saw other woman's intimate photos as well. I saw the dates and assumed that's the girl he had one night stand. He told me he was drunk and the girl was flirting with him and seduced him but you took someone's nude photos while you told me it was nothing. I don't believe and think all guys are like you or the guys you told me because the relationships I had before were not like this. I should have confronted you and ask you why you took the intimate image of me but I didn't had courage back then. I should have reported him for taking the picture of me without my permission. I'm having nightmares that a guy is following me to take a photo or film me. In that dream, I told the guy to stop but that guy was obsessively following me and get more aggressive. I ran away to a building and try to lock the door and hide but the man is shouting and pounding the door to hit me. I'm scared both in my dreams and in reality. I'm scared he could use that image to destroy me and shame me. I have to live my life without knowing what he could do with that picture. I was a brave woman to walk the streets but now I feel small and if there's a guy shouting aggressively, my heart rate goes extremely high. He used to talk violently and yelled at me when he was angry or drunk. I'm keep regretting that even though I noticed a lot of red flags, I still dated him. It feels like I made a bad decision and everything happened because of my decision to love him.

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  • Message of Hope
    From a survivor
    🇦🇺

    I know not feeling believed can be rough. Sometimes I don’t even believe myself but I’ll believe you because I know that if I had just one person who believed me, that would make me feel seen and would help me heal.

    Dear reader, this message contains language of self-harm that some may find triggering or discomforting.

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  • Taking ‘time for yourself’ does not always mean spending the day at the spa. Mental health may also mean it is ok to set boundaries, to recognize your emotions, to prioritize sleep, to find peace in being still. I hope you take time for yourself today, in the way you need it most.

    Story
    From a survivor
    🇺🇸

    Growing up isn't what I thought it'd be.

    When I was in my freshman year of high school, I was stoked. What 15 year old girl wouldn't be? New responsibilities, new school, new friends, and most importantly for our story, a new Cross Country team. On my new team there was a guy, lets call him Name (not his actual name). I was instantly drawn toward Name as he has the same condition as me (vitaligo). It gave us something to talk about, something to bond over and soon enough we were friends. I remember exercising with him and some friends on our team's stationary bikes, talking about normal stupid teenager things when it dawned on me that I thought he was attractive, maybe I even liked him a bit. Soon enough, fall had come to an end and the Cross Country season was over. Me and Name didn't talk after that, we just didn't have any classes together and by the time the incident happened, I had almost forgotten he existed. It was after school on a spring afternoon, and I was staying to practice some choir music in the choir room. After I was done with my work, I slipped out of the class to walk the halls for a bit, to see if I saw anyone I knew that I could talk to. Campus Security was sparse at the time, so it wasn't likely I was going to get caught walking around after school without a hall pass. Thats when I see one of my friends talking to Name in his JROTC uniform by the front of the school by the office and cafeteria. Happy to see the both of them, I walk up to say hello to them and almost immediately notice that something is off with Name. His eyes are glossy and red, and it doesn't seem like he's fully listening when you speak to him. I was unsettled at first by it but in my few months of highschool I had already learned that teenage drug use here was not uncommon. I just tried to brush it off, even though it worried me. I remember asking if he was on something, all I got was a smile and nod of his head. Soon enough my friend had to be picked up, leaving me alone with Name. I didn't feel uncomfortable at this point because it was fine if I knew him right? He'd never do anything bad to me, we were friends. He told me he was hot, and wanted to find somewhere colder, so we walked down one of the hallways in search of a cold room. We come to the stair well that leads to the second level of the school and go up so I can check and see if any of the empty classrooms are cold. He waits by the stairwell as I do so but I only get to check one classroom before he suggests the elevator by the stairwell. These elevators are normally locked, only accessible by special keys so students can't get into them. As he pulls a key from his back pack I remember that he'd injured his knee some time ago, I remember him using crutches for awhile. He used the elevator to get to the second story of the school while he was hurt, no wonder he had a key. This is where the memory gets a bit fuzzy, I start to get nervous as he compliments my new haircut, calling me cute and other words of affection. Being a 15 year old girl, I should've been excited with these sweet words, I should've been flattered and appreciative but I wasn't. I couldn't shake the uneasy feeling his eyes gave me. It wasn't long before he moved closer to me, hazy eyes piercing straight through mine. He then asked me for a hug, and I didn't exactly want to give him one but I was horrible at saying no, I grew up as a people pleaser. When he hugged me, I was immediately uncomfortable when I felt that he was hard through his pants. When he didn't pull back from the hug after a few seconds, I tried to push him away, to give him the signal that I was uncomfortable. He eventually let go after a few seconds but looked me in the eyes with a disgusting smile and started to kiss me. It was sloppy and disgusting and thats when I knew I needed to get out. I told him no and pulled away from him but he persisted. I felt so helpless. I told myself that maybe I should like it, that it was something I should appreciate because I used to like him. I didn't feel that way after he started unbuckling his pants. I started to tell him no more clearly and assertively but he cornered me in the elevator. I was so afraid that I was going to be raped, I'm a 4'11 120lbs girl being cornered by someone who was training to be in the military and almost a foot taller than me. I froze in fear as he groped me, sticking his hand in my underwear and pressing his bare penis againist me, humping me. I was almost in tears as I fearfully continued to tell him no, to stop. I just felt so violated and scared. When I realized that nobody was going to come save me, I pushed him off me with all my strength a few times before I was able to get out of the situation. When I went home that night, I worked up the courage to tell my best friend, who helped me through telling a trusted teacher about the incident the next day. The attention of the school officials, of my family and of the police was so scary to me. It made me feel like I was in trouble. I know now that I did the right thing.

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  • Story
    From a survivor
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    #731

    I am usually a private person, I dont really share my personal life online. Today, I want to share my story, and hopefully, it will help someone to speak up and/or better protect their kids. I was molested by my own father when I was a child 10-12 years old. I met him when I was 10 and went to live with him to another country with his wife let's just say that they are the worst humans I could ever have met in my life. the wife did not participate in the sexual abuse but she did everything else (mental abuse, physical, verbal, etc) I had the courage to tell her everything my dad did at the beginning she acted like she loved me so much and she was on my side she wanted to help me but she betrayed me, she sided with her husband and they are still together, the moved to the US 7 years ago. Let me also add that I am the product of a rape, this man raped my mom and wanted her to abort me but she did not ( that is why I love my mom so much) My mom told me everything he did to her and of course he denied everything when I confronted him, last year I saw a theraphist for a short period of time and she told me it is important to trust my mom. Recently I asked mom why she sent me to live with him if she knew he was a bad person, she told me she could never imagine that he would dare to something like that to me because I was his daughter, and the situation in Haiti was unberable at the time. I don't resent my mom because I understand why she did it. Moral of the story never send your kids to life with strangers in hope of a better life no matter who that person is. I am also in the US and life is difficult as a single woman, sometime I wish I had a father and knowing he lives so close to me hurts so bad. I was no contact with him for a while but recently I reach out so he could help me but a car battery, I don't want to be friends or anything because I hate him so so much but at the same time if I see a car crash him that might hurt because we have the same blood. Should I be cordial with him or do no contact again?

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  • Community Message
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    Story of my stolen life

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  • “Healing is different for everyone, but for me it is listening to myself...I make sure to take some time out of each week to put me first and practice self-care.”

    Story
    From a survivor
    🇧🇷

    Fraternity Rape

    This is another incident from my survivor story, IT STARTED WITH MY BROTHER. I am working up to the police incident. Please read my story for context. This one brought back pain in writing it. Sophomore year of my philosophy major in college. I had recently gone on a trip to Portugal with nice older man who basically invited me to Portugal with the understanding that I would be his lover for a free trip. He had been one of my customers at the restaurant and I took him up on his proposition for the fun of it and had a great time. That was my spring break. This was a few year period when I was very promiscuous after being abused by my brother for years at home and repressed in a Catholic high school as parental punishment for starting a sexual relationship with a boy my age. When a girl in my logic course who was pre-law invited me to a fraternity party I thought it would be nice to hang with people my own age. Fraternities and sororities were not my cup of tea and still are not. After doing a keg stand to impress strangers I was looking for the upstairs bathroom because the line for the downstairs one was long. That one had a few girls waiting and a guy who had held one of my legs for the keg stand started flirting with me and offered to take me to a secret bathroom. The bathroom was legit but then he beckoned me into a bedroom across from it where two other frat brothers were. I was apprehensive but with the other guys there I was a little more at ease that he wasn’t just trying to take me to bed. I was open to finding a hot guy, to be honest, but he was NOT it. Neither were the other two. I sat chatting with them and drinking tiny shots of cinnamon whiskey and getting more nervous when somebody tried to get in the door to the room but it was locked. My guy yelled at them to go away. Then I tried to get up and leave but was pulled back to my seat the bed. I am small so I am easily overpowered. “You can’t leave yet. We’re just getting to know you.” One rapist said. “No teases allowed here.” “What do I have to do to get back out to my friend?” I asked something like that but used her name. They looked at each other with nasty smirks and I regretted the question. What one of them came up was a blowjob contest in which I have twenty seconds to make each of them cum but I had to go in circle until one did and then he was eliminated and I had to do all three. So they stood on three sides of the bed with me in the middle and took out their penises. One had a stop watch and without hesitation I started sucking the one nearest me. I wanted to get out of there and was physically afraid of them. This was away to avoid any violence and not even give them the satisfaction of thinking they forced me to do anything. So I went round and round getting very tired. 20 seconds was too short and they had pulled off all my clothes. I stopped and asked the one who made up the game for 60 seconds. Suddenly I was pulled violently back by my legs from the one behind me he held my legs apart as he quickly started banging me. I did not even see his face until later. The one who I had been talking to got up on the bed and started doing it to my mouth. I don’t me he put it in my mouth. He grabbed my head with both hands and forced it in and was banging my face as hard as the guy behind me was doing it. I had to stay up on my elbows arched to prevent him from ripping my hair up to keep me at his level. Nothing like this had ever happened to me. It had always been one partner at a time. They were mean and I tried so hard to keep up. After that craziness was over and both of them satisfied themselves in me, the original guy pulled me up onto the bed and said something like, “Only one hole left for me.” I was not used to anal sex then. I offered to go wash up if he would please not do anal with me. He laughed and shook his head. So, laying on my back with my legs spread, he squirted some aloe vera gel from the bedside table down there and watched me face to face as he worked his penis in one thrust at a time. He saw the pain on my face that I could not hide. I had to kiss him while her hurt me. Even when he got going fast it took him a while. One of them was watching us, smiling from the side and the other was playing with his phone and I think taking pictures. Phones did not do videos yet. The smiling one once asked, “Dude, is it really in her ass?” After he was finished with me he thanked me and left. Said he had responsibilities. The one with the phone left too. I tried to leave. “Not so fast.” The other one said pushing me back down. I told him I had done everything they wanted and more and asked to please leave. He told me I was the hottest chick he had ever F-’d and he wanted round 2. I just wanted to get out of there. One more obstacle. I worked my mouth on him for a while to get him even half rubbery again and worked it inside. That failed and I had to do it again. Finally I used every trick I could including faking orgasms, having a real orgasm, and talking dirty to him to get him to release inside me. I was so shaky and exhausted after being their whore for so long it was hard to get my clothes on. I was in fear he would stop me, and he did. I told him I just wanted to got pee and clean up and asked him if I could sleep in his bed with him—just a trick. I worked. I thanked him, nonchalantly closed the door behind me and hurried down the stairs without drawing too much attention. I kept a smile on my face as I made it out the front door and off the porch. I kept of the act for a block before I just started running as far away as I could. I was actually terrified someone might be after me until I was out of the neighborhood far from campus and to a gas station. I called a taxi and went home. My roomate was sleeping in her room and I just sat in the shower. In my story I used this as an example of how I avoided being raped by just going with it when I was in a rape situation. But this felt like rape. I went back to partying and using alcohol and marijuana to dampen the impact and feel artificially warm and fuzzy. And casual sex with hot men. But this was rape. I was gang raped. Maybe better for me than if I had tried to fight them and lost but it still sucks and leaves me with hurt and guilt and fear.

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  • “You are not broken; you are not disgusting or unworthy; you are not unlovable; you are wonderful, strong, and worthy.”

    Story
    From a survivor
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    #1304

    So I am currently in a gap year and it has given me a lot of time to think about my future but also my past. I was 9 when it happen, I remember quite a bit and it has been jarring to look at that memory 10 years later. My cousin she was 12 at the time. I was visiting like I normally did at the time but this visit was different as we were left alone in the house for a better part of the day. We were going to take a bath together like we would normally do but then she said she had something to show me while the water was running. She went into her parents room and came back with a magazine, it was a porn magazine. She closed the toilet seat and said that she wanted me to do what some of the men and women in the magazine were doing to her. We kissed, touched each other, and rubbed our genitals together. We then went on to bath and she didn't really say anything after we were done and I didn't really know how to feel because she was all smiles and happy and I was out of it and I think I have been out of it for most of my life because I have never told anybody what happened. It honestly feels like an out of body experience thinking back on it because it was basically buried in my subconscious and It has affected a lot of my life. I don't know if she remembers but I do, and she's meant to come over for Christmas and I don't know what to do because I basically cut off all communication once I remembered what happened. And we are meant to be super close but I don't know how I am meant to interact with her.

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  • Story
    From a survivor
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    Repressed

    Repressed
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  • Message of Healing
    From a survivor
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    I need to reach out i hope to heal from this. my goal is to get him locked up before this happens again. my hope is to ask god to guide me.

    Dear reader, this message contains language of self-harm that some may find triggering or discomforting.

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  • We all have the ability to be allies and support the survivors in our lives.

    Story
    From a survivor
    🇺🇸

    Welcome to Florida.

    My name is Name I am a lifelonglocation 1and relocated to location 2 3 years ago. I never thought in my most horrific Nightmares that I would have a devastating story like this to tell. But now I do and this is my location 2 life. Welcome to location 2. The land of delusion. I have been trying to file a lawsuit for the following abuse and mental/psychological cruelty that has happened to me since relocating to this God forsaken state: -False Imprisonment -Medical Malpractice/Medical Negligence -Defamation of Character -Falsafying Records I have been trying to file these claims against Mental Institution Name in location 2. I have been working with Name 2 of Organization Name since last year regarding ordering a site inspection against this facility due to all the violations they committed that have gone unnoticed and undocumented from the inspection done by Agency Name Please see below for an outline of what has occurred: ========================== Date: Followed up on my rape kit done at the Rape Crisis Center Name a few weeks prior with the policewoman assigned to my case, Name 3. I went to the precinct to speak to her because I missed her call and they told me she was going to come to me later that day. Name 3 of the Name of Department came to my apartment later that day with 2 other policemen/women, bullied and forced me out of my home, Name 4 Acted me and sent me to Psych Ward Name via ambulance and restraints. I was told by all 3 police that Hospital Namewas going to examine me and look into why my stomach was so enlarged. I was kept at Psych Ward Name all night. No one examined me nor did the ask about my stomach issues or my vaginal soreness from being REPEATEDLY raped. I was then taken by ambulance in the middle of the night to Mental Institution Name 2. All of this was STRONGLY AGAINST MY WILL. Date 2: 1st day at Mental Institution Name 2: --Violently ill and throwing up nonstop from the medication, which they stated they had no record of the next day in their charts, I was then given a shot in the buttocks because I refused the medication that made me ill and then reacted terribly from the shot, jumping out of my skin for a straight 24 hours. --Complained of my vaginal soreness throughout my 2 week stay due to being repeatedly raped and no medicine was given to me for this, I was completely ignored. --Was unable to shower for days due to lack of towels --Badgered/Harrassed by another drunk patient who threw her dirty diaper in my room in the middle of the night and frightened me. When I complained to staff about this nothing was done. ---Changed my medication the first time with a new medication which caused my tongue to swell up, was unable to talk the entire day/evening. --Psychiatrist who was assigned to me decided to change my medication again throughout my 2 week stay which made me more anxious, feeling like I was going to have panic attacks. She then decided to give me an injection to treat skyzophrenia in my left arm. I am NOT SKYZOPHRENIC. My left arm blew up and was very achy. She wanted to keep me for an additional 4 days after that to give me the second injection so I then petitioned the court to be discharged with the help of the public defender, Public Defender. Public Defender never mentioned anything about the mandatory 72 hour hold for LegalActs, as I was already kept against my will for nearly 2 weeks before reaching out to him for assistance. I Learned that on the police report Name 3 stated false 911 calls. THIS IS A BLATANT LIE and the report was falsified. I followed up on a rape kit and responded to Name 3's call ONLY WHEN SHE CALLED ME. Date 3 Discharged from Mental Institution Name 2 I was traumatized for a week after being discharged. I was unable to drive or leave my house due to constant panic attacks. To this day I still baracade my front door with 3 dining room chairs due to lack of protection from the police, as my rapist is still at large. In addition to this, I was told the police threw out my Rape Case due to insufficient information. REGARDING THE INSPECTION FROM Agency Name: It was 7 months from point of complaint sent to the field office for them to inspect. We are no longer in COVID so this does not make sense why it took so long. I was held for 10 days with no hearing and no sign of voluntary admission. There is no evidence in the medical records that a petition was even requested per law. This is CLEARLY false imprisonment! I have been continually suffering from PTSD, Nightmares & Panic Attacks since this horrific incident has occurred. I am seeing a Psychiatrist and have been prescribed 3 psychotropic drugs to help assist in my suffering. I have already called 20Location 2 ATTORNEYS & 10 Location 1ATTORNEYS since last year to try and seek justice however no one is willing to take on my case. I have been walking around for nearly 3 years carrying all this pain of sexual and emotional trauma and there are days that destroy my peace so much that I get physically ill. I have several health issues that have developed since relocating to Location 2 and Doctors that are unable to cure me. I am grateful for the few people I have in my life who offer support and so happy yo have this platform to assist in my healing. Thank you for listening. ❤️

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  • “These moments in time, my brokenness, has been transformed into a mission. My voice used to help others. My experiences making an impact. I now choose to see power, strength, and even beauty in my story.”

    Story
    From a survivor
    🇺🇸

    #325

    I just learned what the term COCSA is. I’ve been in trauma therapy for a year and finally told my therapist, after 8 years of seeing her, what happened to me when I was a kid. I was around 6 years old. One of my best friends, who was also a girl, told me that she wanted to play a game. Once she started doing what she was doing, I felt really confused and scared. She threatened to tell her mom that I was mean to her if I told anyone what was happening. This happened for years and she also introduced me to other things like pornography. One time, her mom caught us naked and SCREAMED at us. Another time, MY mom caught us but only shut the door and never talked to us about it. Two adults saw the inappropriate touching between children and neither of them did anything. And unfortunately, I ended up doing the same thing to another friend, because I thought it must be normal and okay. I was only 7 years old but I hate that I did this to another person, too. It happened to me but I made it happen for someone else. For over 15 years, I kept that shame all to myself: obviously nothing happened to me because she was also a girl, a year younger than me, and i never stopped it and neither did the adults. And then the extra shame now that I put another person through that, and who knows how it’s affected her to this day? My heart aches for little me. Things would’ve been different if the adults who saw what was happening did something to stop it.

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  • Welcome to Our Wave.

    This is a space where survivors of trauma and abuse share their stories alongside supportive allies. These stories remind us that hope exists even in dark times. You are never alone in your experience. Healing is possible for everyone.

    What feels like the right place to start today?
    Story
    From a survivor
    🇺🇸

    Survivor

    My name is Survivor and I live in Huntsville, TX. In 2004, at the age of 15 I was introduced to a man who was a pedophile. This was just after my parents divorced and after growing up with a severely abusive father, I was desperate from male leadership in my life. Needless to say, I was an easy victim. This man began grooming me and would eventually begin molesting me. This happened once or twice a month for the rest of my high school. Little did I know, this man was working alongside a college ministry called Chi Alpha and the Assemblies of God for at least 2 decades and had already molested other boys. For which he served a mere 90 days in Alaska jail. Pastors in our ministry tried to convince students, many of whom who were victims, to write letters of lienance on behalf of the abuser. You would think after high school and turning 18 I would have moved on and left him. After all, why would anyone continue to let themselves get abused? Unfortunately, that’s not how grooming or the mind of a victim works. So, I’m sad to say, the abuse continued. When I was abused in 2005, the statute of limitations in Texas at that time were until the age of 23. At the age of 23, I was still being molested by this man. For a significant amount of time the leadership in the Assemblies of God, which was the denomination I had been apart of my whole life, knew that this man was a registered sex offender and did not take needed steps to rid our ministries of him. I was one of the first victims to publicly come forward in 2023. For nearly 20 years I told no one, not even my wife. Myself and 5 friends, some even pastors in the Assemblies of God, started making calls to friends figuring other men had been abused heard dozens of stories of abuse because we were trying to help over 40 victims get help, seek justice, and heal. We all watched in horror as NDAs were used to insulate organizational leadership to cover themselves, using the NDAs as a fog of ignorance and hiding behind it. Because of this, Justice has not been served. Since then the Assemblies of God has tried to dismiss valid civil claims of negligence, has sidelined victims in the investigation process, and has sneakily tried to get victims to sign NDA’s. I’ll also add that I am a high school teacher here in Texas, and every year I hear stories from students who have been sexually harassed or abused in all kinds of scenarios. The happy side of my story is the abuser is currently in jail and awaiting trial. My wife and I have a rule in our house with our kids - no secrets. Last night I talked to my 8 year old daughter (in kid language) how NDA’s are used. And she said “but if you keep it secret doesn’t that bad person keep hurting children?” I had the privilege of working with Elizabeth and everyone involved with Trey’s Law. It helped my healing so much to be able to meet and talk with other survivors. To hear their struggles and to know I wasn’t crazy or alone. Through that legislative process I found my voice and gained confidence in sharing my story. Thank you Elizabeth for helping me tag along!

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  • Story
    From a survivor
    🇮🇪

    Because we were married…

    I’m sharing here because I hope I can reach out to other women who may have gone through marital rape or may still be going through it and I want you to know you are not alone. For years I felt as if I was asleep as I couldn’t face up to what was happening to me, why I was losing weight and why I so depressed. I minimised everything, even to him. I would try and make him feel better afterwards. Most of the time it was as simple as me saying no to sex and him doing it anyway while I was completely disconnected, and it was so often, I would lie there and wait til he was done most of the time, but each thing built up to him pushing the boundaries further, sometimes when we were out in public, always after I went out with my friends, it was part of the deal. I always told myself he’d be in better form if I just went along with it. He was always so stressed and so angry. And I loved him and sometimes I enjoyed sex with him. It made things very confusing in my head. And I was eating barely anything, which he encouraged, he was constantly buying me exercise equipment and sexy outfits. I kept getting sick, I was tired and low all the time. My family and friends were saying I wasn’t myself. There were 3 incidents that I play over and over in my head that I couldn’t minimise (although I tried). And they led to me telling him our marriage was over. That was a year ago. I thought it might help me to write one of them down and maybe someone will identify with me and it might help them. It was at his best friends wedding and as usual, he wanted us to do something exciting sexually. So we went to the men’s toilets. We were kissing and we started to have sex. I was quite drunk. All of a sudden he turned me around and bent me over the toilet, my hands on the window sill. I started to say no. It came out in what sounded like a little girls voice. I don’t know why I remember that so well. I don’t know why I didn’t shout. He raped me anally in the men’s cubicle and I was crying looking at a dirty window sill and I could hear strange men outside commenting. Afterwards I kept asking why did you do that, I didn’t want that, it hurt me, you were too rough, I said no. But he he didn’t want to talk about it. He left me sitting with one of his male friends that I didn’t know to go outside with his best friend and have cigars. He saw I was in pain and bleeding for days after. I stayed with him for years after that. Other things happened after that too. I ended up feeling like his stress ball, a rag doll, good for nothing else. I was with him since I was 18 years old and we have children together. He was all I knew. He was my husband and I loved him. No one knew what was happening. Everyone thought we were a couple in love. It wasn’t until I told him I couldn’t share a bed with him anymore and I was starting ti have panic attacks that we went to a marriage counsellor and it all came out. I woke up. It was her face. Her reaction. I felt so stupid and embarrassed. And he tried to explain it away to her shouting at her that he was a man. I was sitting there thinking how did I let this happen to me? I always saw myself as quite a strong, intelligent, bubbly person. I’m in my 40s, I should know better. I was looking at the counsellors face and it somehow didn’t feel as if it was happening. I realised I was shaking and she was worried about me and he was shouting at her. I felt so embarrassed and helpless. And stupid in front of another grown woman. I was thinking what if this was someone I loved telling me this happened to them? But still in my head I kept thinking its not really rape because he was my husband, and I loved him and so many times I wanted to have sex with him so how could it be rape. But why did he want to hurt me? I kept thinking this couldn’t be happening to me. Anyway thanks for reading. I hope it helps someone. I feel it helped me to write it down.

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  • Story
    From a survivor
    🇺🇸

    Name

    While working at my long-time job, I met this guy. He seemed friendly and after we started talking, the one phrase he kept saying was, "we're just friends." I know now that that phrase is not real. He started by stalking me while giving the quick little "hi, how's it going?" Then the stalking got to be more, like watching my schedule, where I would be and when. But it didn't feel like stalking, because we were "just friends." Small conversations started to get to be longer conversations. Eventually, we were talking every day. And soon we began texting after work. He inserted himself into my life. Then the sexual flirting started. Of course I did join in, because we were "just friends." At the time, I was helping take care of my elderly grandmother and my mom, that had cancer and was an alcoholic. My father could only do so much on his own with my mom. I was also married with a toddler grandchild. Life was busy and stressful. He was easy to talk to. He let me say whatever I needed to say. I would ask him questions about his life and the answers were short or unbelievable. I thought he was always being sarcastic. It never felt like a real answer. When I would question him, he would simply walk away. Now, I do need to say, I am not innocent in all of this. I could have simply walked away, told him to leave me alone. But I didn't...that's where I went wrong... He would say comments to me about bathing my grandma or mom or cleaning my parents' bathroom. The comments I will choose not to put in here because they are disgraceful and disgusting. Nobody should ever say those comments. When he would say these things, I would tell him to stop. He would smile and repeat them. I, again, asked him to stop saying them. Then he would drive away on his forklift. You see, he was a different department than I, so we both had to make time to talk to each other. He would call me princess. I asked him to stop. I would be walking weird one day because of the arthritis in my lower back. He would ask if I had my "John Wayne" walk going on that day. I'd say no, I'm in pain. Please stop saying that. He would say he worked out every day after work. Then proceed to make a muscle with his bicep. He would say "feel that, I know you want to." Because we were "just friends" and flirting, I would. I would ask him for hugs, because we were "just friends." He would, but only if nobody was around. He would constantly tease me, or "raz" me as he said in the injunction hearing. I would ask him to stop on many occasions. I never reported him to my HR department, because we were "just friends." I should have... There were two occasions that he sexually assaulted me as well. To touch him, remember I asked permission. He didn't have permission to touch me. I had to wear a walkie talkie as part of my job. It was hang on my right side back pocket. Once, he came out of the receiving office (his department) and said "it was too loud to yell to get my attention" so he smacked my radio antenna. I turned around and said "what he hell!" He then proceeded to start up a conversation. The second time, I was walking away, after talking to him, I was pushing a large dumpster, and he went to hit my ass, but got the antenna again. I turned around and gave him a dirty look. I had talked to him for almost 3 years. The last comment that made me finally break came shortly after my car accident. I was hit in the rear corner panel of my husbands' car. The accident was my fault, I know this. The air bags went off. I was simply not paying attention and wanted to get home. I injured my right hip, whiplash, and my pride was very much damaged. But I went to work the next day. He knew about the accident because I texted him a few hours later, because we're "just friends." Of course, I'm limping around and trying to take it easy. I had a physical job at the time. At one point during the day, while taking the garbage and cardboard to the compactors, he said to me, "your ass have a cute wiggle when your hips hurt." I turned around and gave him a dirty look and kept walking. I didn't ask him to stop. There was my second mistake... That was October. Little by little after that I started to limit talking to him. He wouldn't stop saying the crude comments, even though I did participate in some admittedly. I did ask him to stop repeatedly on several other sexual comments. By the end of November, I was no longer talking to him. He had cornered me at one point towards the end of us talking, after my car accident, to say "he did nothing wrong. Why aren't we talking as much?" I told him "I'm working on my marriage." He then proceeded to say, "whatever. You know where I'll be. You know how to find me." We didn't talk or text anymore after Thanksgiving. By the time January came, I couldn't take it anymore. I felt scared constantly, I was in fear for my life (he said some comments about taking his "wife" if she won't give him sex), I was having anxiety attacks driving to work every day. I simply couldn't be near or around him anymore. I finally reported the ass wiggle comment to my supervisor. For the next 7 months, my life got turned upside down. My employer only made the perpetrator be off for three days while they investigated. Nothing was done, except we were both told to stay from one another. The whole time talking with the perpetrator, I was drinking very heavily. Many conversations were forgotten. I would remember details periodically. I would tell them to HR. Nothing was done. I wanted him moved to another plant or fired. My employer refused. I was so scared of him that I got a restraining order. It was granted. My employer then moved him to a different department, but still in the same building and the same hours. I still heard his name constantly. I was starting to develop PTSD. After telling HR the many comments he said, the times I said no, stop it, knock it off, and all the information I gave them, they still wouldn't protect me. I was missing work because I was afraid of him, my marriage was falling apart, and I felt like my employer just wasn't on my side. Finally, 8 months after I first talked to my supervisor, he was fired. But by then, I was a complete wreck. I was being watched, I didn't feel comfortable, and my work was suffering. I had to leave my job. I worked for this company for one month shy of 23 years. My father retired from there after 46 years. I had been a part of this company since before I was born. It was where I was supposed to retire from... But I couldn't let my mental state of mind get betrayed and feel like I'm a nobody. I got a different job and quit. To this day, I still have PTSD. I don't like crowds. Men scare me. And we're still working on our marriage, 3 years later. I'm still going through hell, all because "we're just friends..."

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  • Story
    From a survivor
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    #1438

    He acted like he's the most active and honest guy. Gossiping or telling me the people we know mutually are not a nice guy or ppl who treat women like a toy. He told me other guys are looking other women to judge their looks and body shapes. He constantly told me he's not that kind of guy but you were still friends with them. He told me the other guys are talking about women's underwear colors they saw. I should have known that you are not different with the ppl you told me. He once told me he had a one night stand which I didn't like hearing but I tried to understand him because that happened a year ago before I met you. The pandora's box opened when I saw a photo album from his phone. He took an intimate photo of me without my consent and he didn't tell me he had it. I had a weird feeling so I scrolled up the album and saw other woman's intimate photos as well. I saw the dates and assumed that's the girl he had one night stand. He told me he was drunk and the girl was flirting with him and seduced him but you took someone's nude photos while you told me it was nothing. I don't believe and think all guys are like you or the guys you told me because the relationships I had before were not like this. I should have confronted you and ask you why you took the intimate image of me but I didn't had courage back then. I should have reported him for taking the picture of me without my permission. I'm having nightmares that a guy is following me to take a photo or film me. In that dream, I told the guy to stop but that guy was obsessively following me and get more aggressive. I ran away to a building and try to lock the door and hide but the man is shouting and pounding the door to hit me. I'm scared both in my dreams and in reality. I'm scared he could use that image to destroy me and shame me. I have to live my life without knowing what he could do with that picture. I was a brave woman to walk the streets but now I feel small and if there's a guy shouting aggressively, my heart rate goes extremely high. He used to talk violently and yelled at me when he was angry or drunk. I'm keep regretting that even though I noticed a lot of red flags, I still dated him. It feels like I made a bad decision and everything happened because of my decision to love him.

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  • Message of Hope
    From a survivor
    🇦🇺

    I know not feeling believed can be rough. Sometimes I don’t even believe myself but I’ll believe you because I know that if I had just one person who believed me, that would make me feel seen and would help me heal.

    Dear reader, this message contains language of self-harm that some may find triggering or discomforting.

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  • Story
    From a survivor
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    Father Daughter Incest I should have stopped

    It is with great shame that I confess here. I was a passive enabler of abuse. I had been molested as a girl by an older boy in grade school and should have been less of a coward. I finally turned in my husband and ended his incestuous abuse of his own daughter. I deserve the tears I cry. I was a swing shift nurse and usually slept like a rock with my pill. That night I got out of bed after a few hours and wandered past the kitchen to the other side of the house where my stepdaughter room was. It sounded a little like crying, or laughing.  It was hard to tell what was happening at first though the cracked door on the other side of house. My stepdaughter's room. But soon I made out that my husband was kneeling and leaning forward over the bed with his head between his daughter's spread legs. The noises were panting and squeaking from him performing cunnilingus.  This quickly concluded and he took a position lying in bed and although her body was mostly blocked because she was on the other side of him from the door, It was evident that she was giving her dad fellatio. Her head was rising and falling and he had his hand on her head. She was only nine! I left  and went back to bed, wanting to forget what I had seen. Why not talk to him and stop it right away? I should have. But my husband had lost his wife only a few years before, and my step daughter had lost her mother.  The woman had been paralyzed below the waist and had severe back pain.  She took her own life two months after the injury, days after being discharged home from the hospital. There was a lot between them because of their loss that I could never be a part of. The idea that sexual contact was a means of grieving did not sit well with me but I did not want to make waves.  It seemed voluntary on her part. I loved my husband. It had taken a long time to find him after much hoping and dating and heartache and searching. So maybe I was selfish for wanting to keep my husband. I did not know if it happened very often. I turned a blind eye..   For at least a year and a half I did not get out of bed if I woke up in the middle of sleep time. Then on a Friday night, after I had worked a night shift and stayed up to run errands during the day, then attended my stepdaughter's dance recital where she performed ballet, jazz, and hip hop with her troop, I crashed. But I got up, restless. This time the door to her bedroom was closed and probably locked, lights on from below.  The sounds of my stepdaughter in the throes were loud enough that I went out the back door and around to the window, and stood up on the central air unit to see through the large gap in the curtains.  I had a direct view of my esteemed husband, who is quite good to me, up on his knees on the bed, pumping back and forth. His daughter was bent over in front of him with her bare posterior in the air, down on her elbows.  I could see him moving in and out of her and shaking her whole body with his thrusts.  I felt sudden anger.   I regret that my anger was not about what it should have been about. My anger was jealous anger.  Thoughts of my thirty-four year old body and how it could not compete with the firm adolescent body I saw before me, and that we had watched this beautiful curve-developing girl while holding hands with my husband as she danced in different outfits. I was a little jealous then, not even knowing that he was thinking of her, that way. I kept watching him sex her, unable to consider looking away. He slowed his thrusts and collapsed on the other side of her. I saw her shiny body collapse too. Her breath was so deep and fast. They took a couple minutes to recover and I got more upset when I thought my husband was going to fall asleep with HER. But he got up, talking. He dressed and walked around the bed. She got up, seemingly at his command and they hugged, standing up. He smiled at her and turned toward the door. Only then was the spell broken and I hurried back to the door and went in. He was already showering. I never said anything and let it fade, pretending I did not think about it often. I was more passionate and adventurous with my husband, and colder with my stepdaughter.      A couple years later when I found her crying in her room one day while my husband was out of town, I went in to comfort her. It got around to me mentioning her sexual relationship with her father in an accusatory way. She broke down even farther and told me about how she asked him to stop when she started 8th grade. She had become aware how “crazy” it was and begged him to stop if he loved her. He told her he couldn’t stop because he loved her. Something snapped inside me and I helped her fall asleep and then drove to the police station. I turned myself in and my husband. It was very messy and my life has been since. But I don’t regret it. I only regret waiting five years to end a marriage that I should have ended after five months. I deserve all the tears.

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  • You are surviving and that is enough.

    If you are reading this, you have survived 100% of your worst days. You’re doing great.

    “I have learned to abound in the joy of the small things...and God, the kindness of people. Strangers, teachers, friends. Sometimes it doesn’t feel like it, but there is good in the world, and this gives me hope too.”

    Taking ‘time for yourself’ does not always mean spending the day at the spa. Mental health may also mean it is ok to set boundaries, to recognize your emotions, to prioritize sleep, to find peace in being still. I hope you take time for yourself today, in the way you need it most.

    Story
    From a survivor
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    #731

    I am usually a private person, I dont really share my personal life online. Today, I want to share my story, and hopefully, it will help someone to speak up and/or better protect their kids. I was molested by my own father when I was a child 10-12 years old. I met him when I was 10 and went to live with him to another country with his wife let's just say that they are the worst humans I could ever have met in my life. the wife did not participate in the sexual abuse but she did everything else (mental abuse, physical, verbal, etc) I had the courage to tell her everything my dad did at the beginning she acted like she loved me so much and she was on my side she wanted to help me but she betrayed me, she sided with her husband and they are still together, the moved to the US 7 years ago. Let me also add that I am the product of a rape, this man raped my mom and wanted her to abort me but she did not ( that is why I love my mom so much) My mom told me everything he did to her and of course he denied everything when I confronted him, last year I saw a theraphist for a short period of time and she told me it is important to trust my mom. Recently I asked mom why she sent me to live with him if she knew he was a bad person, she told me she could never imagine that he would dare to something like that to me because I was his daughter, and the situation in Haiti was unberable at the time. I don't resent my mom because I understand why she did it. Moral of the story never send your kids to life with strangers in hope of a better life no matter who that person is. I am also in the US and life is difficult as a single woman, sometime I wish I had a father and knowing he lives so close to me hurts so bad. I was no contact with him for a while but recently I reach out so he could help me but a car battery, I don't want to be friends or anything because I hate him so so much but at the same time if I see a car crash him that might hurt because we have the same blood. Should I be cordial with him or do no contact again?

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  • “Healing is different for everyone, but for me it is listening to myself...I make sure to take some time out of each week to put me first and practice self-care.”

    “You are not broken; you are not disgusting or unworthy; you are not unlovable; you are wonderful, strong, and worthy.”

    Story
    From a survivor
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    Repressed

    Repressed
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  • We all have the ability to be allies and support the survivors in our lives.

    “These moments in time, my brokenness, has been transformed into a mission. My voice used to help others. My experiences making an impact. I now choose to see power, strength, and even beauty in my story.”

    Story
    From a survivor
    🇺🇸

    Growing up isn't what I thought it'd be.

    When I was in my freshman year of high school, I was stoked. What 15 year old girl wouldn't be? New responsibilities, new school, new friends, and most importantly for our story, a new Cross Country team. On my new team there was a guy, lets call him Name (not his actual name). I was instantly drawn toward Name as he has the same condition as me (vitaligo). It gave us something to talk about, something to bond over and soon enough we were friends. I remember exercising with him and some friends on our team's stationary bikes, talking about normal stupid teenager things when it dawned on me that I thought he was attractive, maybe I even liked him a bit. Soon enough, fall had come to an end and the Cross Country season was over. Me and Name didn't talk after that, we just didn't have any classes together and by the time the incident happened, I had almost forgotten he existed. It was after school on a spring afternoon, and I was staying to practice some choir music in the choir room. After I was done with my work, I slipped out of the class to walk the halls for a bit, to see if I saw anyone I knew that I could talk to. Campus Security was sparse at the time, so it wasn't likely I was going to get caught walking around after school without a hall pass. Thats when I see one of my friends talking to Name in his JROTC uniform by the front of the school by the office and cafeteria. Happy to see the both of them, I walk up to say hello to them and almost immediately notice that something is off with Name. His eyes are glossy and red, and it doesn't seem like he's fully listening when you speak to him. I was unsettled at first by it but in my few months of highschool I had already learned that teenage drug use here was not uncommon. I just tried to brush it off, even though it worried me. I remember asking if he was on something, all I got was a smile and nod of his head. Soon enough my friend had to be picked up, leaving me alone with Name. I didn't feel uncomfortable at this point because it was fine if I knew him right? He'd never do anything bad to me, we were friends. He told me he was hot, and wanted to find somewhere colder, so we walked down one of the hallways in search of a cold room. We come to the stair well that leads to the second level of the school and go up so I can check and see if any of the empty classrooms are cold. He waits by the stairwell as I do so but I only get to check one classroom before he suggests the elevator by the stairwell. These elevators are normally locked, only accessible by special keys so students can't get into them. As he pulls a key from his back pack I remember that he'd injured his knee some time ago, I remember him using crutches for awhile. He used the elevator to get to the second story of the school while he was hurt, no wonder he had a key. This is where the memory gets a bit fuzzy, I start to get nervous as he compliments my new haircut, calling me cute and other words of affection. Being a 15 year old girl, I should've been excited with these sweet words, I should've been flattered and appreciative but I wasn't. I couldn't shake the uneasy feeling his eyes gave me. It wasn't long before he moved closer to me, hazy eyes piercing straight through mine. He then asked me for a hug, and I didn't exactly want to give him one but I was horrible at saying no, I grew up as a people pleaser. When he hugged me, I was immediately uncomfortable when I felt that he was hard through his pants. When he didn't pull back from the hug after a few seconds, I tried to push him away, to give him the signal that I was uncomfortable. He eventually let go after a few seconds but looked me in the eyes with a disgusting smile and started to kiss me. It was sloppy and disgusting and thats when I knew I needed to get out. I told him no and pulled away from him but he persisted. I felt so helpless. I told myself that maybe I should like it, that it was something I should appreciate because I used to like him. I didn't feel that way after he started unbuckling his pants. I started to tell him no more clearly and assertively but he cornered me in the elevator. I was so afraid that I was going to be raped, I'm a 4'11 120lbs girl being cornered by someone who was training to be in the military and almost a foot taller than me. I froze in fear as he groped me, sticking his hand in my underwear and pressing his bare penis againist me, humping me. I was almost in tears as I fearfully continued to tell him no, to stop. I just felt so violated and scared. When I realized that nobody was going to come save me, I pushed him off me with all my strength a few times before I was able to get out of the situation. When I went home that night, I worked up the courage to tell my best friend, who helped me through telling a trusted teacher about the incident the next day. The attention of the school officials, of my family and of the police was so scary to me. It made me feel like I was in trouble. I know now that I did the right thing.

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    🇮🇪

    Story of my stolen life

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  • Story
    From a survivor
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    Fraternity Rape

    This is another incident from my survivor story, IT STARTED WITH MY BROTHER. I am working up to the police incident. Please read my story for context. This one brought back pain in writing it. Sophomore year of my philosophy major in college. I had recently gone on a trip to Portugal with nice older man who basically invited me to Portugal with the understanding that I would be his lover for a free trip. He had been one of my customers at the restaurant and I took him up on his proposition for the fun of it and had a great time. That was my spring break. This was a few year period when I was very promiscuous after being abused by my brother for years at home and repressed in a Catholic high school as parental punishment for starting a sexual relationship with a boy my age. When a girl in my logic course who was pre-law invited me to a fraternity party I thought it would be nice to hang with people my own age. Fraternities and sororities were not my cup of tea and still are not. After doing a keg stand to impress strangers I was looking for the upstairs bathroom because the line for the downstairs one was long. That one had a few girls waiting and a guy who had held one of my legs for the keg stand started flirting with me and offered to take me to a secret bathroom. The bathroom was legit but then he beckoned me into a bedroom across from it where two other frat brothers were. I was apprehensive but with the other guys there I was a little more at ease that he wasn’t just trying to take me to bed. I was open to finding a hot guy, to be honest, but he was NOT it. Neither were the other two. I sat chatting with them and drinking tiny shots of cinnamon whiskey and getting more nervous when somebody tried to get in the door to the room but it was locked. My guy yelled at them to go away. Then I tried to get up and leave but was pulled back to my seat the bed. I am small so I am easily overpowered. “You can’t leave yet. We’re just getting to know you.” One rapist said. “No teases allowed here.” “What do I have to do to get back out to my friend?” I asked something like that but used her name. They looked at each other with nasty smirks and I regretted the question. What one of them came up was a blowjob contest in which I have twenty seconds to make each of them cum but I had to go in circle until one did and then he was eliminated and I had to do all three. So they stood on three sides of the bed with me in the middle and took out their penises. One had a stop watch and without hesitation I started sucking the one nearest me. I wanted to get out of there and was physically afraid of them. This was away to avoid any violence and not even give them the satisfaction of thinking they forced me to do anything. So I went round and round getting very tired. 20 seconds was too short and they had pulled off all my clothes. I stopped and asked the one who made up the game for 60 seconds. Suddenly I was pulled violently back by my legs from the one behind me he held my legs apart as he quickly started banging me. I did not even see his face until later. The one who I had been talking to got up on the bed and started doing it to my mouth. I don’t me he put it in my mouth. He grabbed my head with both hands and forced it in and was banging my face as hard as the guy behind me was doing it. I had to stay up on my elbows arched to prevent him from ripping my hair up to keep me at his level. Nothing like this had ever happened to me. It had always been one partner at a time. They were mean and I tried so hard to keep up. After that craziness was over and both of them satisfied themselves in me, the original guy pulled me up onto the bed and said something like, “Only one hole left for me.” I was not used to anal sex then. I offered to go wash up if he would please not do anal with me. He laughed and shook his head. So, laying on my back with my legs spread, he squirted some aloe vera gel from the bedside table down there and watched me face to face as he worked his penis in one thrust at a time. He saw the pain on my face that I could not hide. I had to kiss him while her hurt me. Even when he got going fast it took him a while. One of them was watching us, smiling from the side and the other was playing with his phone and I think taking pictures. Phones did not do videos yet. The smiling one once asked, “Dude, is it really in her ass?” After he was finished with me he thanked me and left. Said he had responsibilities. The one with the phone left too. I tried to leave. “Not so fast.” The other one said pushing me back down. I told him I had done everything they wanted and more and asked to please leave. He told me I was the hottest chick he had ever F-’d and he wanted round 2. I just wanted to get out of there. One more obstacle. I worked my mouth on him for a while to get him even half rubbery again and worked it inside. That failed and I had to do it again. Finally I used every trick I could including faking orgasms, having a real orgasm, and talking dirty to him to get him to release inside me. I was so shaky and exhausted after being their whore for so long it was hard to get my clothes on. I was in fear he would stop me, and he did. I told him I just wanted to got pee and clean up and asked him if I could sleep in his bed with him—just a trick. I worked. I thanked him, nonchalantly closed the door behind me and hurried down the stairs without drawing too much attention. I kept a smile on my face as I made it out the front door and off the porch. I kept of the act for a block before I just started running as far away as I could. I was actually terrified someone might be after me until I was out of the neighborhood far from campus and to a gas station. I called a taxi and went home. My roomate was sleeping in her room and I just sat in the shower. In my story I used this as an example of how I avoided being raped by just going with it when I was in a rape situation. But this felt like rape. I went back to partying and using alcohol and marijuana to dampen the impact and feel artificially warm and fuzzy. And casual sex with hot men. But this was rape. I was gang raped. Maybe better for me than if I had tried to fight them and lost but it still sucks and leaves me with hurt and guilt and fear.

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  • Story
    From a survivor
    🇿🇦

    #1304

    So I am currently in a gap year and it has given me a lot of time to think about my future but also my past. I was 9 when it happen, I remember quite a bit and it has been jarring to look at that memory 10 years later. My cousin she was 12 at the time. I was visiting like I normally did at the time but this visit was different as we were left alone in the house for a better part of the day. We were going to take a bath together like we would normally do but then she said she had something to show me while the water was running. She went into her parents room and came back with a magazine, it was a porn magazine. She closed the toilet seat and said that she wanted me to do what some of the men and women in the magazine were doing to her. We kissed, touched each other, and rubbed our genitals together. We then went on to bath and she didn't really say anything after we were done and I didn't really know how to feel because she was all smiles and happy and I was out of it and I think I have been out of it for most of my life because I have never told anybody what happened. It honestly feels like an out of body experience thinking back on it because it was basically buried in my subconscious and It has affected a lot of my life. I don't know if she remembers but I do, and she's meant to come over for Christmas and I don't know what to do because I basically cut off all communication once I remembered what happened. And we are meant to be super close but I don't know how I am meant to interact with her.

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  • Message of Healing
    From a survivor
    🇺🇸

    I need to reach out i hope to heal from this. my goal is to get him locked up before this happens again. my hope is to ask god to guide me.

    Dear reader, this message contains language of self-harm that some may find triggering or discomforting.

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  • Story
    From a survivor
    🇺🇸

    Welcome to Florida.

    My name is Name I am a lifelonglocation 1and relocated to location 2 3 years ago. I never thought in my most horrific Nightmares that I would have a devastating story like this to tell. But now I do and this is my location 2 life. Welcome to location 2. The land of delusion. I have been trying to file a lawsuit for the following abuse and mental/psychological cruelty that has happened to me since relocating to this God forsaken state: -False Imprisonment -Medical Malpractice/Medical Negligence -Defamation of Character -Falsafying Records I have been trying to file these claims against Mental Institution Name in location 2. I have been working with Name 2 of Organization Name since last year regarding ordering a site inspection against this facility due to all the violations they committed that have gone unnoticed and undocumented from the inspection done by Agency Name Please see below for an outline of what has occurred: ========================== Date: Followed up on my rape kit done at the Rape Crisis Center Name a few weeks prior with the policewoman assigned to my case, Name 3. I went to the precinct to speak to her because I missed her call and they told me she was going to come to me later that day. Name 3 of the Name of Department came to my apartment later that day with 2 other policemen/women, bullied and forced me out of my home, Name 4 Acted me and sent me to Psych Ward Name via ambulance and restraints. I was told by all 3 police that Hospital Namewas going to examine me and look into why my stomach was so enlarged. I was kept at Psych Ward Name all night. No one examined me nor did the ask about my stomach issues or my vaginal soreness from being REPEATEDLY raped. I was then taken by ambulance in the middle of the night to Mental Institution Name 2. All of this was STRONGLY AGAINST MY WILL. Date 2: 1st day at Mental Institution Name 2: --Violently ill and throwing up nonstop from the medication, which they stated they had no record of the next day in their charts, I was then given a shot in the buttocks because I refused the medication that made me ill and then reacted terribly from the shot, jumping out of my skin for a straight 24 hours. --Complained of my vaginal soreness throughout my 2 week stay due to being repeatedly raped and no medicine was given to me for this, I was completely ignored. --Was unable to shower for days due to lack of towels --Badgered/Harrassed by another drunk patient who threw her dirty diaper in my room in the middle of the night and frightened me. When I complained to staff about this nothing was done. ---Changed my medication the first time with a new medication which caused my tongue to swell up, was unable to talk the entire day/evening. --Psychiatrist who was assigned to me decided to change my medication again throughout my 2 week stay which made me more anxious, feeling like I was going to have panic attacks. She then decided to give me an injection to treat skyzophrenia in my left arm. I am NOT SKYZOPHRENIC. My left arm blew up and was very achy. She wanted to keep me for an additional 4 days after that to give me the second injection so I then petitioned the court to be discharged with the help of the public defender, Public Defender. Public Defender never mentioned anything about the mandatory 72 hour hold for LegalActs, as I was already kept against my will for nearly 2 weeks before reaching out to him for assistance. I Learned that on the police report Name 3 stated false 911 calls. THIS IS A BLATANT LIE and the report was falsified. I followed up on a rape kit and responded to Name 3's call ONLY WHEN SHE CALLED ME. Date 3 Discharged from Mental Institution Name 2 I was traumatized for a week after being discharged. I was unable to drive or leave my house due to constant panic attacks. To this day I still baracade my front door with 3 dining room chairs due to lack of protection from the police, as my rapist is still at large. In addition to this, I was told the police threw out my Rape Case due to insufficient information. REGARDING THE INSPECTION FROM Agency Name: It was 7 months from point of complaint sent to the field office for them to inspect. We are no longer in COVID so this does not make sense why it took so long. I was held for 10 days with no hearing and no sign of voluntary admission. There is no evidence in the medical records that a petition was even requested per law. This is CLEARLY false imprisonment! I have been continually suffering from PTSD, Nightmares & Panic Attacks since this horrific incident has occurred. I am seeing a Psychiatrist and have been prescribed 3 psychotropic drugs to help assist in my suffering. I have already called 20Location 2 ATTORNEYS & 10 Location 1ATTORNEYS since last year to try and seek justice however no one is willing to take on my case. I have been walking around for nearly 3 years carrying all this pain of sexual and emotional trauma and there are days that destroy my peace so much that I get physically ill. I have several health issues that have developed since relocating to Location 2 and Doctors that are unable to cure me. I am grateful for the few people I have in my life who offer support and so happy yo have this platform to assist in my healing. Thank you for listening. ❤️

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  • Story
    From a survivor
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    #325

    I just learned what the term COCSA is. I’ve been in trauma therapy for a year and finally told my therapist, after 8 years of seeing her, what happened to me when I was a kid. I was around 6 years old. One of my best friends, who was also a girl, told me that she wanted to play a game. Once she started doing what she was doing, I felt really confused and scared. She threatened to tell her mom that I was mean to her if I told anyone what was happening. This happened for years and she also introduced me to other things like pornography. One time, her mom caught us naked and SCREAMED at us. Another time, MY mom caught us but only shut the door and never talked to us about it. Two adults saw the inappropriate touching between children and neither of them did anything. And unfortunately, I ended up doing the same thing to another friend, because I thought it must be normal and okay. I was only 7 years old but I hate that I did this to another person, too. It happened to me but I made it happen for someone else. For over 15 years, I kept that shame all to myself: obviously nothing happened to me because she was also a girl, a year younger than me, and i never stopped it and neither did the adults. And then the extra shame now that I put another person through that, and who knows how it’s affected her to this day? My heart aches for little me. Things would’ve been different if the adults who saw what was happening did something to stop it.

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    Grounding activity

    Find a comfortable place to sit. Gently close your eyes and take a couple of deep breaths - in through your nose (count to 3), out through your mouth (count of 3). Now open your eyes and look around you. Name the following out loud:

    5 – things you can see (you can look within the room and out of the window)

    4 – things you can feel (what is in front of you that you can touch?)

    3 – things you can hear

    2 – things you can smell

    1 – thing you like about yourself.

    Take a deep breath to end.

    From where you are sitting, look around for things that have a texture or are nice or interesting to look at.

    Hold an object in your hand and bring your full focus to it. Look at where shadows fall on parts of it or maybe where there are shapes that form within the object. Feel how heavy or light it is in your hand and what the surface texture feels like under your fingers (This can also be done with a pet if you have one).

    Take a deep breath to end.

    Ask yourself the following questions and answer them out loud:

    1. Where am I?

    2. What day of the week is today?

    3. What is today’s date?

    4. What is the current month?

    5. What is the current year?

    6. How old am I?

    7. What season is it?

    Take a deep breath to end.

    Put your right hand palm down on your left shoulder. Put your left hand palm down on your right shoulder. Choose a sentence that will strengthen you. For example: “I am powerful.” Say the sentence out loud first and pat your right hand on your left shoulder, then your left hand on your right shoulder.

    Alternate the patting. Do ten pats altogether, five on each side, each time repeating your sentences aloud.

    Take a deep breath to end.

    Cross your arms in front of you and draw them towards your chest. With your right hand, hold your left upper arm. With your left hand, hold your right upper arm. Squeeze gently, and pull your arms inwards. Hold the squeeze for a little while, finding the right amount of squeeze for you in this moment. Hold the tension and release. Then squeeze for a little while again and release. Stay like that for a moment.

    Take a deep breath to end.