After years of not understanding my fear towards men, it came to me one night that I wasn’t just afraid of men. I was and still am afraid of the idea of men who I am not familiar with, men who remind me of him. The one that made me feel as if I was the problem, the one that made me feel that I couldn’t trust my mom – even though if she knew, she would have probably killed him. I blamed myself for so many years for not being able to feel comfortable around men when in reality it was all his fault. He took half of my life when he violated me. I was just a kid, just a little girl.  I spent most of my life thinking about that moment and how much it had affected me as an individual. I finally said, “enough.” After years of blame and not being free, I decided to seek help. I enjoy little things again and feel stronger than I have ever felt. I will not let him take more time than he already has. It hurts sometimes but the pain doesn’t last long anymore. I am free, I am happy once again.

-Anonymous