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Essays

First-person stories from sexual assault survivors

The sheets

I experienced my childhood rape as a death.
stop sign photo by Anwaar Ali

Stop is a complete sentence

I’m a baby. The monster comes to life here, before I have words. Before I can say stop. If I could, I would scream the word until I’m hoarse.
tarot card spread by Soulful Stock

You can’t heal trauma with a spiritual bypass

No amount of forgiveness, meditation or crystals was going to put that genie back in the bottle.
Mother with son at beach photo by Xavier Mouton Photographie Survivor Lit magazine amplifying voices of sexual assault survivors

Healing the past with healthy boundaries in the present

Internalized and unresolved shame from one generation becomes the burden of the next.
My rapist sent me a friend request

My rapist sent me a friend request

The warrior within me has awakened and she can be powerful and fierce.

Tracing

“Are you ready to talk about it?” my therapist asks me for what seems to be the hundredth session in a row. “No.” “Are you ready to write about it?” She is pushing me and she...

A good sport

Don’t mean to brag, but I am a triathlete of some repute. My #metoo moment happened on one of my first races as part of an Australian team, competing overseas in a Honolulu World...

An old woman survivor: my story

I reached far back under the bed and pulled the orange out into the light of the small bedroom. The mold had grown since I last touched it. I tapped my small fingers at...

Ghost Weeds (Reclamation)

The screen door swung shut with a muffled wooden bang, and darkness opened up behind me. The well-lit inside world disappeared as I turned toward the uncertain night and made a quick calculation. I...
photo of cathedral by Francesco Alberti featured on Survivor Lit, a literary magazine for and by sexual assault survivors

The confession

I felt nothing when he died.  

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The acknowledgement

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I’m trying to be gentle with myself, but what if I never believe my body when it tells me what happened?

Have the time of your life!*

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*Common side effects may include but are not limited to: harassment, stalking, getting drugged, passing out in...

To the fathers who do not abuse their daughters

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On my street I am witness to the young men who carry the pink-flowered backpacks of little girls, who...