Recently, I had a conversation with someone that has been the fuel for my recent revelings and ponderances. During our discourse, the one thing that really caught my attention was that they mentioned how adult survivors do not speak about the things they have faced. They said that they wished that there was a way to get survivors to open up, but then, the public is often not prepared.
As a survivor, I know the reasons that we hide. I also know the reasons we should not. Yet, there is such a wide gap between what we need and what we receive that we quickly learn that it is much easier to live with the mess inside, rather than to open up – adding the extra burden of the mess outside as well.
For this reason, I have been deeply conflicted. I want survivors to feel safe and at home in their own environments. I want the rest of the world to know that the walking wounded are among them, and if they do not take notice and attempt to help, our wounds will only worsen, until there is nothing left but to bleed out all over the place.
It is time for us to speak. It is time to leave behind fear. If the world will not come to us, then we must go to them….