How To Find Courage To Share Your Story
When you bury your secrets, especially a secret of sexual abuse, you’re actually burying yourself alive. Your silence will guarantee a sense of defeat. You must know that an incident like sexual abuse silences you. It strips you from power and your ability to have a voice. Therefore, to take back control, you must speak your truth to shatter the walls of shame and guilt. The truth is that shame and guilt thrives in silence, so it’s up to you to raise your voice and begin your healing journey.
Journaling.
When you find it hard to speak about the sexual abuse that you endured, then it’s time to write. Write a letter to yourself. Put all your feelings on paper, both good or bad. There is no right or wrong. Keep a journal next to your bed and develop the habit of writing because as you develop the habit of writing, you’re doing two things: actively processing your emotions, and you’re getting comfortable with communicating your feelings and details about the story. You’re developing your voice.
Trusted Friend or therapist.
If you have a trusted friend or family member that you feel comfortable speaking to about your story, then do so. Something happens inside you when you speak and share your story onto someone else. Note that the more you share your story, the more courage you develop.
Begin a blog.
Once you speak to someone and you get comfortable speaking to others about your story, you may feel inspired to being a blog to read other sexual abuse survivors. Or you may want to create a blog to create awareness. All of which will empower you.
Write poetry.
To write poetry is to dive into your thoughts and paint a picture of what is taking place in your inner world in the form of melodic words. Our souls sing songs of pain and joy and when you transfer those cries of the soul into melodies, you become encouraged to share more of your feelings. And the more you grow in tune with your feelings, the more you’ll be able to channel your emotions appropriately and imaginatively.
Focus on your creative nature.
We are all created to create. We were designed to launch the endeavors that set our soul on fire — tapping into your creative nature by learning a new set of skills or painting, learning photography, becoming a content creator on YouTube, etc. Flowing in that creative nature will help you develop new perspectives, new ideas, and hope. And new perspectives will help you focus and cause you to shift your eyes to look at the possibilities that lie on the horizon.
Read.
Read stories about other sexual abuse survivors and their experiences. You can even take it to step further and watch videos about people sharing their journey of overcoming trauma healing. Exposing yourself to this will produce hope because the more you see others speaking their truths the more you’ll feel empowered to share your story.
“When we speak our truth, we shatter the prison that keeps us chained to a broken identity. And only when we break out of that prison that we courageously step into our destiny.”
