College is a time of transition, but also a time of truth for many victims of sexual assault and abuse.
By Kimiko Martinez
Lifestyles Editor
It’s not as if she has time to think about it.
In fact, she doesn’t really want to think about it at all.
But after a few months of rushing from class to sorority meetings, swimming practice to her on-campus job, it starts to catch up with her. She’s having trouble sleeping, her concentration in class is slipping and the headaches that started a couple of weeks ago aren’t going away.
But you can’t run away from your past. And if you’ve been the victim of sexual assault or sexual abuse, it can only make things worse.
BUMPS IN THE ROAD
According to Dr. Emily Scott-Lowe of Pepperdine’s Student Counseling Services, college is a time of transition where students move from adolescence to adulthood, and for those with some sort of traumatic event in their past, like sexual abuse, it can be especially hard.
“You’re going to hit some bumps in the road,” Scott-Lowe said. “And for those with some trauma in their past it can be even bumpier.”
As Scott-Lowe explained, trauma can range from a car accident at age 5 to being molested by your elementary school principal at age 10, obviously having different effects. Even those who’ve had very little trauma in their childhoods can have difficulty adjusting to college life. But for those who’ve been the victims of sexual assault and abuse, the psychological and emotional impacts can be extremely damaging if the person doesn’t find ways of coping with the trauma.
“For most victims, initially they’re in shock,” said Gail Abarbanel, founder and director of the Rape Treatment Center, Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center. “I think a lot of college students try to push the feelings away and try to not let it affect them.”
But Scott-Lowe said that’s hard to do, and that eventually the trauma will catch up to you in one way or another.
“We’re more than just flesh and blood. Our bodies are all integrated,” Scott-Lowe said. “A physical wound might affect us psychologically as well as spiritually. Likewise, a spiritual wound might affect us psychologically and physically.”
Perhaps that is why a number of victims experience physical symptoms in the aftermath of their attacks.
Abarbanel said reactions to sexual assault obviously vary from person to person, but common symptoms of Rape Trauma Syndrome include flashbacks of the incident, sleep disturbances, shame, self-blame, difficulty concentrating and initial feeling of shock or disbelief.
“The biggest issue for college students is telling,” Abarbanel said. “The most important thing in the healing process is not keeping silent and getting support in whatever way possible.”
Whether that be meeting with a counselor or just talking to friends and family, Abarbanel said taking action is the greatest step toward healing that victims can take.
SILENT SUFFERING
“Rape changes a woman’s life forever,” said Morgan Fink, co-president of the Feminist Forum and an organizer of the Take Back the Night event last week. One of her good friends was date raped her freshman year in college. “For a year I was the only person she told.”
And according to national statistics, that’s common, as only about 16 percent of rapes are reported.
But contrary to most assumptions, rape is not just a female issue. And they’re not the only ones keeping quiet.
Studies show that males, the target of one in four rapes, are “considerably less likely than girls to tell someone about the abuse.”
Jamie Zuieback, spokesperson for the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, said victims don’t come forward for a number of reasons.
“According to a survey a couple of years ago,” Zuieback said, “one of the reasons victims don’t come forward is that they perceive it as a personal issue, fear they won’t be believed, or that nothing will be done.”
But Zuieback said she thinks that’s “really starting to change.”
“For about a decade only about 30 percent (of women came forward),” she said. “But the most recent data is up to 38 percent. There’s no way to call that a trend yet, but hopefully that number will continue to climb.”
But while more and more victims are coming forward, for most victims the prospect of going public is their No. 1 fear.
SPEAKING UP
“Coming forward doesn’t mean going public or filing a police report right away,” Abarbanel clarified. “Those are personal choices that (victims) make in the healing process.”
But the confusion between coming forward and going public is just one of several misconceptions that victims need to get informed about. Abarbanel stresses that coming to the center, which is a “private, safe, separate part of the (Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center),” or calling the hotline if victims want to remain anonymous, is extremely important. At a minimum, victims can get the necessary information in exploring their options following an assault. Beyond simply talking to a counselor, people can get free medical care, information on reporting the assault if they so choose and even antibiotics that can prevent sexually transmitted diseases (but only within the first 72 hours after the assault).
“It’s really important to get medical care,” Abarbanel stressed, “as there can be injuries that (victims are) not aware of.”
Statistics from the United States Department of Justice estimate that a woman is sexually assaulted every two minutes, and according to the California Attorney General’s office, approximately 28 percent of the forcible rapes in California occur in Los Angeles County.
Abarbanel said two or three new victims come to the center daily.
Fink said that at every one of the five jobs she’s had since she was 16, “at least one girl has told me about her rape. And those are just the girls who are talking about it. Many never do.”
Although Scott-Lowe could not reveal specific numbers regarding the number of sexual assault/abuse victims that come into the Counseling Center, she did say in the 19 years she’s been there, “every year we have students come in and say we’re the first people they’ve come to and this is the first time they’ve revealed (the assault or abuse).”
A GRAY AREA?
Both Abarbanel and Scott-Lowe say some women don’t come forward because they’re uncertain whether an encounter could be considered assault or not. They are quick to point out, however, that whether a sexual impropriety could be legally classified as assault or abuse, victims still need to come forward to get the support they need. Scott-Lowe cites examples where alcohol may have inhibited judgment or the lines between consensual and non-consensual are blurred.
Abarbanel agrees.
“Having sex with someone without their consent can be considered sexual assault,” she said. “No one has the right to have sex with you without your consent. And if you’re incapacitated, then you can’t give consent.”
According to the Rape Treatment Center’s Web site “a majority of the sexual assaults experienced by college students occur in situations involving drinking by the victim, the assailant or both.”
And Scott-Lowe stresses that alcohol consumption is one of the factors that students can control.
“You can’t control what happened in your childhood and you can’t control all the creepy guys that are out there,” she said. “But this is one thing you can control.”
Scott-Lowe continues that one of the side effects from childhood sexual abuse is the vulnerability to being sexually abused in college, adding that alcohol can make an already skewed “radar” for bad situations worse.
AT RISK
As if college students weren’t already in one of the most vulnerable age groups for sexual assault (just behind teenagers), the vulnerability of being away from home and increased alcohol use can make the risk of being victimized higher.
“Women need to realize that when they drink they’re vulnerable to sexual assault,” Scott-Lowe said. “Alcohol clouds your judgment. So for women to protect themselves, it’s best to stay away from alcohol.”
Scott-Lowe is quick to point out, however, that regardless of the circumstances surrounding an assault, there are people who want to help.
“Maybe you’ve made some poor choices,” Scott-Lowe said, “but there are people who are very willing to help.”
With the long-term effects that sexual assault can have both Abarbanel and Scott-Lowe stress the need for victims to get support wherever they can.
“Talking about it with people who are supportive really helps you to experience some relief,” Abarbanel said. “Don’t be alone in it.”
January 30, 2003
