This is much better than Reddit

[yusesya]

Hi everyone. I'm Su, and I'm really happy to be here. I heard about After Silence through a Reddit forum for survivors called r/rape (Reddit is a popular site for all different kinds of forums, ranging from pop culture and news to anonymous chatroom therapy - that's what r/rape was). Although r/rape was somewhat helpful in the beginning - I felt validated and comforted by the other survivors there - we were often bullied and tormented by trolls and perverts who would take our venting/ranting posts and turn them into sick jokes and sexual fantasies. Reddit is a very loose website so it was easy for anyone to make an account, enter the rape counseling forums, and wreck havoc. I received two verbally abusive messages from two different perverts on Reddit. They were unfortunately very graphic and they sent me into a terrible panic attack, I was screaming and crying. I posted the details about the messages from the Reddit perverts onto The Aftermath thread.

Anyways, I'm really glad I signed up for AS. The Reddit forums were like fortresses constantly under attack by perverts who wanted to harass me and other survivors. AS is like a safe haven. I feel much better already.

I'm from Istanbul, Turkey, but now I live in the United States. My assault happened back in 2017 by someone I thought was my friend. I've made a lot of progress in the past year - my nightmares and panic attacks are not as frequent as they used to be - but, like I said, sometimes there are setbacks, like when those perverts bullied me. But I'm blessed to have people around me who support me, and I'm again very happy to be here.

I am studying law and I want to help women and children all around the world, especially in Turkey and the rest of the Middle East. International politics is very important to me. I want to protect young girls from going through what I did, and to change my country's patriarchal culture. There is lots of abuse against women in Turkey and the Middle East but we are fighting back! 💕

Edited October 7, 2019 by yusesya
specify where I'm from

[missfrier]

Dear @yusesya

I would like to welcome you to After Silence's forums.  We are all here for you and want to support you in any way we can. I know that posting for the first time can be scary.  Please don't worry, though; you will always be given so much support from our lovely community and its members.  You're not alone - we are with you.

You will soon receive an official welcome message in your inbox.  Please feel free to respond to that PM if you have any questions about the forum or if you need some help finding your way around the site. 

Take care and keep reaching out!! 

[8888]

Welcome to After Silence.  I'm happy you found us.  We have a great staff here unlike Reddit.  I’m sorry for what brought you here but I’m happy you are here reaching out for support.  Good job taking this step in your healing process.  You are not alone and what happened to you wasn’t your fault.  Take your time exploring and post when you are ready.  If you have any questions feel free to message me. 

[MeBeMary]

Hello again, yusesya.

I am glad you found our Welcome forum and decided to say hello here and give a brief background. I am glad you see how protective this site is of our members. I've already gave comments on reddit, but you feel comfortable here, which I am glad.

I admire how you want to help women and children and are taking action to try and find a way. Abuses is wrong everywhere, but there are also good people everywhere. I am glad that you are trying to minimize one, by being the other!  Wish there was no need, but I admire how you are standing up and fighting.

Hopefully you find the support and understanding to help you with your struggles from abuse, which may help you fight for others in the future.

Best wishes!

Mary

[Struggling88]

Hi, Su, and welcome!