• Home
• Services
• Information
• Contact

Information

Our free information pack will be available to download soon.

Being sexually abused hurts physically and emotionally. If this has happened to you, the most important thing you need to remember is that it was not your fault. Whatever the circumstances, however you behaved, whatever you said or did or drank, the person who abused you chose to do that, and it was a violation of your body and your trust.

Getting help

There are people who can help you if you have been raped or sexually abused. These people will listen, believe, and understand. If this has happened to you, then you can phone or email us confidentially at Oxford Rape Crisis Centre, or phone directory assistance for the Rape Crisis Centre near you. You may also want to speak to someone you know and trust. Have a look at our links page for information about other useful services.

Feelings

Feelings matter, and it's important to remember this. If you have been sexually abused you may feel a number of different feelings, all of which are usual and valid. You may feel...

• Different
• Strange
• Lonely
• Like this has never happened to anyone else (but remember it has and you are not alone)
• Guilty (This may be because your abuser told you it was your fault but that is never true. Abuse is always the responsibility of the abuser)
• Worthless or dirty - tainted by the abuse (remember, you are not bad because something bad happened to you)
• Confused (especially if the abuser is a family member or friend, you may still care about him or her. That's OK)
• Crazy
• Angry (You have a right to be angry when you are hurt)
• Embarrassed (Although it should be your abuser who feels this).

Myths and Facts

Myth: Some men can't control their sexual urges.
Fact: All people, men and women, girls and boys, are responsible for their own behavior.

Myth: If a young woman didn't 'want it', she would not have been drinking, or gone with him, or dressed 'sexy.'
Fact: A woman can behave how she likes. Even if she is in an unsafe situation, that never means she deserves to be abused.

Myth: If a woman or girl was flirting with someone, or had sex with them before, it's not rape.
Fact: Rape is sex without consent. If the woman doesn't give her consent, no matter what else happened, it is rape.

Myth: A parent acting in a sexual way with a child may be showing love.
Fact: No matter what the abuser means to do, sexual abuse does not show love. It shows someone abusing power.