[The Myth of Sexaul Abuse # 3] Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s Testimony and the Myth of “lying about sexual assault ” (part II)

Unable to recall the specifics outside the trauma events but remembering the trauma memory in details is one of the typical symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The traumatic event is like a movie running through the survivor’s head over and over again, and therefore, they remember the details of the specific traumatic events. In the meantime, it also means that “before and after” becomes a blur for the survivors. They generally unable to recall the details of the “before and after” events but only the critical segments because the brain is occupied by the replay of the traumatic events over and over again.

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From “13 Reasons Why” to “Facing Your Truth” – “Facing the truth about rape” (Part II)

Our first step is to help her feel safe when she is in school or at home, especially when she is at the place where the perpetrator is around. Then, we will have to talk about what’s her next step. No matter she decided to press charges or not, there is always something a counselor can help other than “moving on.” Many victims cannot take the stand to file for the legal actions because we don’t make them believe that we believe their stories and we will be with them along the way. The process of figuring out what she wants to do can take a while already. When the client feels that he/she is locked into a “yer or no” situation, that’s they often feel trapped.

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[Myth about Sexual Abuse # 1]–“What Does A Perpetrator Look Like?”

The main point I want to make is this: There are many victims out there, including the friends or family sitting next to you right now, and you don’t know about their stories because they never said anything about it.

If there are so many victims out there, how many perpetrators do you think are out there? The answer is probably the same: the perpetrators look like just a regular and nice guy sitting next to you, and they will never tell you: “I am a perpetrator.”

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I am Dr. Grace Chen, a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist.