Success Stories
When 50 year old “Jennifer” came to us, she was experiencing night terrors and flashbacks to the physical and sexual abuse she had suffered throughout her life. She was fearful and timid and could not look anyone in the eye. This is understandable because she had only known abuse all her life.
Physical abuse by her mother began when she was a toddler, and she experienced ongoing sexual abuse from an uncle beginning at age five. As an adult, Jennifer had been married multiple times and was abused by every one of her husbands. Jennifer learned to avoid people and use alcohol to dull what her therapist called “a lifetime of pain”.
Through months of therapy, Jennifer learned to trust her therapist and was able to work through her history of abuse. She more fully understands that she deserves healthy relationships, and she is able to keep herself safe. Her self-esteem has improved and her night terrors have ended. Jennifer’s compassion for other victims has caused her to be an advocate and an educator of the effects of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
“Danielle” was the oldest of 5 children and although she lived with her mother, she had to take care of her siblings because her mother was addicted. Danielle endured physical abuse and ongoing sexual abuse by her mother’s boyfriends. Often, there was no food in the house for her to eat or to feed her siblings.
Eventually, she was removed and placed with a relative who was also neglectful and abusive. Another removal put her in foster care, and then finally with her grandmother.
Her grandmother brought her to us knowing she needed help after all she had experienced in her ten years of life. When Danielle came to us, she didn’t trust anyone and lied all the time. She was disruptive and aggressive in school. After months of therapy, Danielle has been able to tell her story and has learned that she deserves better than she received all those years! She makes positive choices, getting A’s and B’s in school and has formed healthy relationships. Because she addressed her abuse in therapy, her self-esteem has improved, and she knows how to advocate for herself.