Answer:
by Konstance McCaffree: (05/19/2004)
Thanks for your question and your concern for this young woman. I asked one of my experts who works with MR youth in the area of sexuality and sexual abuse. Sadly, this is a common experience for MR youth.
What this sounds like to me is behavior that is not unusual for a victim of sexual assault. I think she needs to be assessed for PTSD. She is also very high risk for repeat victimization. Putting herself in many risky situations....
Rape crisis centers often provide this service for free, but the counselors have varying levels of skill and training. I think people with disabilities need someone with more skill not less skill.
So all of the things that she is doing I think is in response to trauma, and I do not think any advice will work unless this underlying trauma issue is addressed. When she is in therapy she may feel worse before she gets better, but she has to keep working at it and she will get to the other side.
It may be very difficult for her to negotiate all of this on her own, but tell her to trust her instincts about whether her therapist is good or not. Help her get a therapist but urge her to not keep going to someone she does not think is good.
I hope you will be able to help her get to the rape crisis therapist and begin working on her trauma issues first.
Please write again if you have questions.Reviewed by Sexual Health Editorial Team
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