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Hi
Amy,
I
was raped at 14, by a psycho "friend"
who was sent to jail for four years. Back then,
I didn't know what to do, so I kept the baby.
The baby is now wonderful and I don't regret it.
I'm also married to a wonderful man.
However, I feel like no rape crisis center can
help me, and no one answers me on the boards.
There is no one out there that seems to care.
I am in one-on-one therapy, but I still need a
friend.
Another
problem is that the rapist has been writing and
phoning since he was put in jail. He is a real
psycho and he's threatening to come after me to
kill me or something because he wants his kid,
and he does really mean it. No one on the boards
goes through this because usually your rapist
runs away. Do you have any suggestions on where
I can find a friend or even another rape victim
that kept her kid?
Given
up hope,
Hope
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Dear
Hope,
You
seem to be in need of two things - one is to take
steps now to keep yourself safe in the event that
your rapist is released from prison; two, is to
get you support so you don't feel alone. Even
though your rapist is in prison, he is still clearly
posing a threat to you. I hope that you take the
letters he has sent to you to the police. There
must be some version of a protection order even
when he isn't doing so in person. I think this
is an important step to take because if he does
get released and if he does approach you , you
will need to get a restraining order. To do so
you have to prove that it is necessary. What you
have thus far should be able to prove that.
To
the second question - a friend for you...there
is a
directory of women's services at Feminist.com.
You can type in your zip code and be led to resources
nearest you. Hopefully a rape crisis center will
be nearby. The National Coalition Against Domestic
Violence has a national hotline, which can put
you in touch with resources in your neighborhood
-(800) 799-SAFE. These centers often provide rape
counseling, too, so they might be able to help.
I hope so.
I
would also suggest you reference the Feminist.com/V-Day
Anti-Violence Resource Guide for more resources
and ideas.
Good
luck.
Amy
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