Tag Archives: rape

What Sort of Marriage Is This?

This wasn’t the piece I had started for today but when I saw a news article, I couldn’t help but be astounded, outraged, sickened, horrified at what had happened in one marriage. How could any man do such a thing to his wife? What happened to love honor and cherish? Where are all the things we have been talking about in this blog site like mutual love, respect, acts of kindness, thoughtfulness, consideration, and encouragement? None of them are there. If you haven’t read the article, it is about a man who arranged through an on line list for someone … Continue reading →

Narcissistic Parents and Rape

If there is ever a time when a female needs the support of her parents, in particular her mother, it is when she has been raped or in some way sexually abused. Parents react in a variety of ways to this trauma, but for the adult child of a narcissist, the pain caused by the narcissistic parent can often be worse than the trauma of the rape itself. Let’s look at the case of Jenny. Jenny was raped by a family friend at the age of 24 but did not tell either of her parents immediately. She knew from past … Continue reading →

Sexual Assault: Denying Your Anger at the Perpetrator

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One would expect that when a person has been sexually assaulted, the victim of the crime would be extremely angry at the perpetrator. But the act of sexual assault has such a profound effect on a person that what one might expect should happen, doesn’t necessarily happen that way at all. Take the case of Madi. Madi had been sexually assaulted by her boss of seven years. She didn’t report the incident and continued to work with him. However, within weeks of the assault she developed severe anxiety and panic attacks. It was these out-of-control feelings that drove her into … Continue reading →

Anger and Sexual Abuse (1)

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In The Guilt of Sexual Abuse we looked at the issue of guilt and how it is such a common phenomena as to be almost expected after an incident of sexual assault. Today we will look at the anger associated with this insidious crime. Anger and guilt are the flip sides of the coin of sexual abuse. They are the daily currency for many victims of sexual crimes. But while guilt often appears soon after the abusive incident, anger can take much longer to come to the surface. Guilt, that is, taking responsibility for the abuse upon yourself rather than … Continue reading →

Danger in Not Turning in at the Same Time?

Yesterday in Pets I wrote about the case of the Wooded Rapist and the dog that helped crack the case. After I posted it, I made sure all the doors were locked, turned off all the lights, and then headed up to bed. Wayne was already in bed, so was my mom. Not unusual. Not out of the norm. It’s how the routine goes most nights. If I’m not staying up to bang out a few more articles at the keyboard, I have homecaring duties to tend to. Every so often it’s not work, but a chance to catch up … Continue reading →

Did the Dog That Helped Catch the Wooded Rapist Catch Someone I Know?

There’s been a big story here in Nashville the past few days. A man suspected of being what police had dubbed “The Wooded Rapist” was arrested earlier this week. News broke about the arrest on Thursday. I was watching with my mom when police held a press conference in which they said they believed they had caught the man thought to be a serial rapist. One who had terrorized certain neighborhoods in Nashville for nearly 14 years. What caught my eye was not that it was a breaking story, but because the picture of the suspect on the screen looked … Continue reading →

Your Beliefs and How They Can Make You Unhappy (2)

Ever wondered why some people are happier than others? Most of us tend to put it down to the fact that these happy people have more money, better jobs, better behaved children, no children, close family, etc, etc. Sure, these factors do play a huge part in how happy a person has the potential to be. But they are not the controlling factor. It is what we believe about ourselves and the world we live it that largely determines how happy or otherwise our lives are. We have all heard the stories of the wealthy yet unhappy socialites, so it … Continue reading →

Do Fairy Tales Exist in the Congo?

Anderson Cooper’s breaking my heart. Last month I watched an episode of 60 Minutes where he reported on the possibility of a world without gorillas because of all the unrest in the Congo. Well, gorillas aren’t the only ones whose lives are in danger and experiencing massive upheaval. Last night Anderson Cooper reported about the women of the Congo and all the suffering they’re enduring. “It is, in fact, a war against women, and the weapon used to destroy them, their families and whole communities, is rape.” ~-60 Minutes-~ He told about the unbelievable violence women in villages endure at … Continue reading →

This Week in Mental Health (Nov 5-9)

This week saw several topics covered including the guilt that accompanies sexual assault, and how to help your friend or family member through a psychotic episode. We also began an exciting new series on the effects of street drugs on mental health. Guilt is a specter that often hovers in the lives of survivors of rape and other forms of sexual assault. Yet in our article this week we looked not only at how guilt can stop a person moving forward from the assault but how victims will go to extreme lengths to protect significant others from hearing about their … Continue reading →

Sexual Assault Victims Protecting Others

I read in the weekend paper about a 45-year-old woman who had been repeatedly molested by a minister when she was a small girl. As an adult she reported the matter to the relevant church. It was covered up. Nothing was done about it. Yet this woman hesitated to go to the police. She considered it but decided not to because the minister who assaulted her was a family member and she was concerned that if it went to the police, it would become a public issue and would have an adverse effect on other members of her family. A … Continue reading →