LONG TERM EFFECTS!
Rape Trauma Syndrome and PTSD
Although every survivor you encounter will be unique, many will have one thing in common: Rape Trauma Syndrome (RTS). Identified by Ann Wolbert Burgess and Lynda Lytle Holmstrom, RTS is a cluster of emotional responses to the extreme stress experienced by the survivor during the sexual assault. More specifically, RTS is a response to the profound fear of death that almost all survivors experience during the assault. RTS occurs in two phases:
1. The Acute (Initial) Phase , which usually lasts anywhere from a few days to a few weeks after the attack.
2. The Reorganization Phase , which usually lasts anywhere from a few weeks to several years after the attack.
Often, the end of the Acute Phase will overlap the beginning of the Reorganization Phase. Each phase is characterized by particular emotional and physical concerns that most survivors experience.
The Acute Phase:
During this phase, survivors experience a complete disruption of their lives, responding to the fear of death they experienced. They may display any of a number of disparate emotional responses. They may cry, shout, swear, laugh nervously, discuss the weather, or sit calmly. Responses may vary depending on any one of a number of external circumstances. No response is inappropriate! However, responses fall into one of two main styles:
Expressed : Survivors that use the Expressed style, openly display their emotions. They may be agitated and restless, talk a lot, cry, swear, shout, laugh, etc. Any emotion is appropriate--because they have their own way of responding.
Controlled : Survivors that uses the Controlled style, contain their emotions. Most of the survivor's energy is directed toward maintaining composure. They may sit calmly, respond to questions in a detached, logical way, and downplay their fear, sadness, anger, and anxiety. Both of these styles of emotional response reflect different ways of dealing with a crisis. They may also exhibit characteristics of both styles.
In general, the survivor's initial response to the assault will be shock and disbelief. They may appear numb. Far from being inappropriate, this response provides an emotional "time-out" during which the survivor can acknowledge and begin to process the myriad components of the experience. A survivor who was assaulted by an acquaintance may have a particularly difficult time overcoming shock and disbelief. If the assault was particularly terrifying or brutal, the survivor may experience an extreme shock response and completely block out the assault.
Following the shock and disbelief most survivors initially experience, they may experience a variety of emotions or mood swings. They may feel angry, afraid, lucky to be alive, humiliated, dirty, vengeful, degraded. All of these responses, as well as the many that are not listed, are normal. In short, whatever they feel is valid because they feel it, and it is how they express reaction to the rape crisis.
Physical concerns of the Acute Phase
Usually, the survivor will report a general soreness throughout the body. They will also report pain in the specific areas of the body that were targeted during the assault. These specific pains may be the result of actual physical trauma, or may be a psychosomatic response. Both reasons are equally valid and real.
The survivor will probably notice a disruption in usual sleeping and eating patterns. They may not be able to eat or sleep, or may eat more than usual and be unable to stay awake. They may report nightmares in which the survivor relives the assault. These may evolve into dreams in which the survivor takes the violent role in some way, in effect reclaiming the control lost during the assault. Although both types of dreams may upset them, dreams are part of the healing process. Sexual assault is such a traumatic event that the survivor may dream about it in some way throughout his/her life.
Although every survivor you encounter will be unique, many will have one thing in common: Rape Trauma Syndrome (RTS). Identified by Ann Wolbert Burgess and Lynda Lytle Holmstrom, RTS is a cluster of emotional responses to the extreme stress experienced by the survivor during the sexual assault. More specifically, RTS is a response to the profound fear of death that almost all survivors experience during the assault. RTS occurs in two phases:
1. The Acute (Initial) Phase , which usually lasts anywhere from a few days to a few weeks after the attack.
2. The Reorganization Phase , which usually lasts anywhere from a few weeks to several years after the attack.
Often, the end of the Acute Phase will overlap the beginning of the Reorganization Phase. Each phase is characterized by particular emotional and physical concerns that most survivors experience.
The Acute Phase:
During this phase, survivors experience a complete disruption of their lives, responding to the fear of death they experienced. They may display any of a number of disparate emotional responses. They may cry, shout, swear, laugh nervously, discuss the weather, or sit calmly. Responses may vary depending on any one of a number of external circumstances. No response is inappropriate! However, responses fall into one of two main styles:
Expressed : Survivors that use the Expressed style, openly display their emotions. They may be agitated and restless, talk a lot, cry, swear, shout, laugh, etc. Any emotion is appropriate--because they have their own way of responding.
Controlled : Survivors that uses the Controlled style, contain their emotions. Most of the survivor's energy is directed toward maintaining composure. They may sit calmly, respond to questions in a detached, logical way, and downplay their fear, sadness, anger, and anxiety. Both of these styles of emotional response reflect different ways of dealing with a crisis. They may also exhibit characteristics of both styles.
In general, the survivor's initial response to the assault will be shock and disbelief. They may appear numb. Far from being inappropriate, this response provides an emotional "time-out" during which the survivor can acknowledge and begin to process the myriad components of the experience. A survivor who was assaulted by an acquaintance may have a particularly difficult time overcoming shock and disbelief. If the assault was particularly terrifying or brutal, the survivor may experience an extreme shock response and completely block out the assault.
Following the shock and disbelief most survivors initially experience, they may experience a variety of emotions or mood swings. They may feel angry, afraid, lucky to be alive, humiliated, dirty, vengeful, degraded. All of these responses, as well as the many that are not listed, are normal. In short, whatever they feel is valid because they feel it, and it is how they express reaction to the rape crisis.
Physical concerns of the Acute Phase
Usually, the survivor will report a general soreness throughout the body. They will also report pain in the specific areas of the body that were targeted during the assault. These specific pains may be the result of actual physical trauma, or may be a psychosomatic response. Both reasons are equally valid and real.
The survivor will probably notice a disruption in usual sleeping and eating patterns. They may not be able to eat or sleep, or may eat more than usual and be unable to stay awake. They may report nightmares in which the survivor relives the assault. These may evolve into dreams in which the survivor takes the violent role in some way, in effect reclaiming the control lost during the assault. Although both types of dreams may upset them, dreams are part of the healing process. Sexual assault is such a traumatic event that the survivor may dream about it in some way throughout his/her life.