Dear Christine,
I am a teenager with an issue and I need help urgently.
I was sexually harassed at the age of eight. I was not raped, but just touched by a friend of my brother and constantly harassed by him.
I am now 14 years old and I am very fond of one boy in particular. However, I have found it very hard to be friendly with boys. Each time I attempt to, I get really scared because I remember what happened to me six years ago.
I never told anyone; not my brother, or my parents. The reason why I never told them about what happened is because I never felt like I needed to. Now that I am older and I realize how wrong it was of him to touch me, I am thinking that I should have confided in someone. I was so young I did not understand what was happening.
I want some help, but I don’t know where to go, so I’ve turned to you. Please help me, Christine.
– Scared Teen
Dear Scared Teen,
I regret that you didn’t report the molestation to your parents when it occurred. Had you done so, you could have received help then, and guaranteed that the boy could not abuse another child.
However, do not be too hard on yourself. You were not the one who did something wrong. What you should do at this stage is have a talk with your parents. If you are finding that difficult to do, please clip this letter out of the paper and let them know you are the teenager who wrote it.
It is also very important that you talk about what happened with a professional, possibly one who specializes in post-traumatic stress, who can help you work through this episode of your life. The sooner you start, the sooner you can begin to build healthy relationships with peers.
– CHRISTINE