It’s important to recognize your rights, acknowledge what happened, and understand the potential mental health effects.
In fact, sexual harassment is such a serious issue that it is regulated by the law.
For instance, the U.S. Basically, anything sexual in nature that creates a hostile work environment is considered sexual harassment.
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How to Deal with Sexual Harassment
It is vital to take steps to address the harassment.
Your response can be so significant that you may even have trouble functioning from day to day.
You might also feel betrayed, angry, powerless, hopeless, and out of control.
And in extreme cases, victims may experience depression,anxiety, and thoughts of suicide.
If you are having suicidal thoughts, contact theNational Suicide Prevention Lifelineat988for support and assistance from a trained counselor.
If you or a loved one are in immediate danger, call 911.
For more mental health resources, see ourNational Helpline Database.
You may feel stuck or hopeless about your situation.
They can help you make sense of your experience,heal from it, and move on.
Here are some steps every victim must take so that heal from sexual harassment.
Accept What Happened
What this means is tovalidateyour experience.
Do not minimize what happened or make excuses for the perpetrator.
It is also important to allow yourself to experience your emotions.
Do not bottle up the hurt and anger you are feeling.
Find healthy ways to express these feelings.
attempt to find someone who will respect your feelings and your perspective.
Journal About Your Experience
Describehow sexual harassment affected you.
Explore the different emotions you are feeling.
Sometimes it is helpful to include in your journal a letter to the person who harassed you.
Say all the things you wish you would have said, but didn’t.
Stop Blaming Yourself
What happened to you was not your fault.
You did not cause it and you could not control the other person.
Remind yourself too that you have nothing to be ashamed of and you should not feel guilty.
Blaming yourself will slow your healing.
The only guilty person is the perpetrator.
They made a choice to sexually harass you.
Remember, you have complete control over your response and where you go from here.
Focus on that fact and let it empower you.
Sometimes this means changing jobs or careers.
It also could mean discovering more about yourself.
Too many times, a person’s identity is tied to their work.
Instead, rediscover what makes youyou.
Start a new hobbyand develop new interests.
And most importantly, do not dwell on what happened to you.
For instance:
The key is taking a negative experience and turning it into something positive.
Doing so helps build yourresiliency.
Counselors that specialize insexual assaultor abuse may also be helpful.
In extreme cases, they may even have a go at protect the organization from liability.
It is generally best to find a counselor outside of where the sexual harassment occurred.
Find out which option is the best for you.
Simply being there to listen and be supportive is often all that is required.
They need to know that they are safe with you and that you believe them.
You also could remind them that the harassment was not their fault.
have a go at understand their feelings and offer support.
Stay Connected
Encourage them to stay connected.
The worst thing your friend can do is become isolated or spend a lot of time alone.
Nudge them to stay connected to you and other people.
Give them space if they need it.
Allow them the freedom to do that.
Do not smother them with attention or help.
Realize That Healing Takes Time
Allow them to heal at their own pace.
Do not rush them or have a go at fix things.
Everyone heals at different rates.
Be Supportive
Support their decisions even if you do not agree with them.
It is very important that your friend makes their own decisions.
They need the space and the control takes back their life on their terms.
It is important that youexplore your underlying feelingsand find healthy ways of dealing with these emotions.
Too many times people give a shot to numb their feelings with other things like busy work or food.
Some will even resort to drugs and alcohol to numb the pain and forget for a period of time.
But these are not healthy ways of coping.
Remember, it is not a sign of weakness to get counseling.
In fact, it is a sign of wisdom and courage.
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.Sexual harassment.
2018;31(4):591-601.
2018;5(4):e11290.
