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This year has been one of immense growth for me.
\nI have finally found my voice
\nAnd now that I have, my wounds have become words that hold so much strength and power.<\/p>\n
Since I came completely out of my closet back in May life has really gained momentum
\nThere’s been some really hard times but the positive things are outweighing those.<\/p>\n
Early June I was interviewed by the lovely Megan Bowers-Vette\u00a0<\/a> I was\u00a0interviewed by UNICEF <\/a>a couple of months ago. I know that this is a really tough subject You have to stop You have to stop You have to stop You have to stop Unless you have lived the pain Please just stop We so need you This year has been one of immense growth for me. I have finally found my voice And now that I have, my wounds have become words that hold so much strength and power. Since I came completely out of my closet back in May life has really gained momentum There’s been some really hard times … Continue reading “Turning Wounds into Power”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[40,19,47,4,54,55,58,28,17,49,60,1,18],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybigballofstring.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/935"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybigballofstring.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybigballofstring.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybigballofstring.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybigballofstring.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=935"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/mybigballofstring.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/935\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":956,"href":"https:\/\/mybigballofstring.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/935\/revisions\/956"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybigballofstring.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=935"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybigballofstring.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=935"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybigballofstring.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=935"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nShe was wanting to portray abuse survivors not as victims but as people with renewed strength & life
\nThe US Project<\/a> was begun with a photography exhibition in Whangarei
\nThen released in the most amazing heart rending book
\nI am so proud to have been able to work with Megan in this project
\nShe has done a brilliant job depicting 50 people in NZ & Australia who\u00a0are daily living with the consequences from the experience of rape, and other forms of sexual abuse.
\nShe has now published The Us. Project Book of Stories<\/a>
\nIt is a tremendous book portraying so much heartache, and yet so much strength.
\nSuch a powerful communication
\nI would encourage you to buy this book
\nRead, pass it on, share it around
\nOpen peoples eyes to truths
\nWhere so many refuse to see and choose to stay blinded.<\/p>\n
\nIt was an incredible privilege to work with Shelley on this project.
\nTo be able to speak out on behalf of other children
\nChildren like me who are being silenced
\nNot by violence
\nBut by emotional headfucking
\nWhich is more silencing
\nBecause of the lack of ability that people have to see and understand what is happening
\nThe support which has come from the video and article has been huge.
\nMy hope is that it reaches and helps many young ones to speak out and find help and to prevent so many more from experiencing what I did.<\/p>\n
\nIt is very confronting to so many
\nEspecially those who are connected in a vicarious way to a victim
\nBut what has to be remembered
\nWhen dealing with this type of trauma
\nIs that the victim
\nIs the victim
\nand
\nThe victim
\nshould not
\nis not
\nto be blamed
\nor shamed
\nor accused
\nor doubted
\nNo matter how difficult it is for you to process<\/p>\n
\nand think
\nand just listen
\nand actually
\nhear
\ntheir pain
\nhear
\ntheir truth
\nbecause it is their truth
\nand you cannot dispute their truth<\/p>\n
\ndisbelieving
\nvictim blaming
\nvictim shaming<\/p>\n
\nsupporting
\nencouraging
\nallowing behavioural continuance
\nto the perpetrators
\nJust because they appear to be
\nso good
\nso important
\nso squeaky clean
\nso -‘oh they would never do anything like that’<\/p>\n
\nquestioning
\nwhy didn’t you disclose earlier
\nwhy didn’t you say something at the time
\nwhy did you wear that
\nwhy did you go there
\nwhy did you drink that
\nand the worst one of all
\nwhy didn’t you confront your abuser?????
\nSeriously???<\/p>\n
\nYou have absolutely NO IDEA
\nof the why
\nto any of these questions
\nYou have absolutely NO IDEA
\nof the re-traumatising that happens
\nfrom your questions
\nfrom disclosing
\nfrom the doubting
\nfrom the demands
\nYou put on us<\/p>\n
\nand love us
\nhold us
\nand give us space
\nand time
\nto heal
\nin our own ways
\nin our own time<\/p>\n
\nIf you can do this for us
\nWe can<\/strong> heal
\nWe can<\/strong> become strong
\nWe can<\/strong> face the world again
\nAnd we will totally kick arse and become even stronger than before!
\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/mybigballofstring.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/IMG_0006-502x1024.jpg\")
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