Home -> Help For Survivors -> 24 Stages Of Growth For Survivors of Incest 24 Stages of Growth For Survivors of Incest Developed by Karen Lison, M.A.
I acknowledge that something terrible happened. I know it is not my imagination. I am aware on some level that something was done to me -- I was a victim of incest or sexual abuse during my childhood. I recognize that I am, in fact, a survivor, in the sense that I am alive, and have chosen life over self-inflicted death. I recognize and begin to deal with feelings of being "contaminated" or "damaged". I feel angry about being used and abused. I experience rage at my non-protecting parent ( usually the mother ) . I discuss the abuse thoroughly with my therapist. I tell a non-family member about the abuse. I tell a family member who did not previously know. I completely re-experience and begin to deal with feelings appropriate for each incident of abuse. I begin to give up my sense of responsibility for the abuse occurring. I begin to recognize that I was probably acting appropriately at the time the abuse occurred. ( That is, my reactions were appropriate, the abuse was not ). I am able to understand how the molestation has affected my current relationships and behavioral patterns. I am able to diminish my resistance to talking about the abuse, although maybe not the details of it, with others. If there was a part of the molestation that was sexually pleasurable to me, I am coming to terms with the fact of that pleasure and I am dealing with the guilt surrounding it. If there were aspects of the molestation that I perceived as positive ( such as a feeling of being special in the family ), I am beginning to understand and deal with those feelings. I perceive the connection between the molestation and current relationships and am developing some control around the connection. I recognize that I have a choice as to whether or not I confront my perpetrator(s). I am beginning to understand what I desire from relationships, whether sexual or non-sexual. I am able to enjoy intimacy. I develop a sense of self and my self-esteem has increased. I develop a sense of being somewhat at ease with the subject of my molestation and that of others. I recognize that I have a choice as to whether or not I forgive my perpetrator(s). I am in touch with past anger, but anger is not currently a constant part of my feelings in such a way that it negatively influences my other feelings, my functioning, and my relationships with others. |