Bláthnaid Raleigh, who survived being raped with a bottle five years ago, would like anyone who has yet to seek support after sexual violence to know: “You are braver than you ever could have imagined.”
Her words, in her own handwriting, will be posted on billboards around Dublin in the coming weeks, as part of a campaign to encourage survivors to seek support.
The Signs of Hope campaign, from the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre (DRCC), will see messages from eight survivors who have benefited from the centre’s services.
Ms Raleigh, whose rapist Jonathan (Johnny) Moran was sentenced in July following conviction for raping her in Galway in July 2019, said even despite having the support of her family and accessing rape-crisis services soon after the assault, her recovery has been “an extremely lonely process”.
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With their support, however, she found she “got this strength” almost as if “a different person” was within to carry her through recovery, healing and the legal process.
There was “so much” she would want to say to someone carrying the burden of sexual violence alone, but this untapped “bravery” was something she had identified in herself.
After waiving her anonymity, Ms Raleigh said many people reached out to her on social media to share their experiences.
“During and after the trial of the man who raped me, I was struck by the number of people who contacted me to share what had happened to them. Many of them said that they didn’t feel they could speak to friends or family and this really resonated with me because for a while during my own journey I wasn’t able talk to about what was happening,” she added. “It can be a very lonely place and it can feel like you have to carry so much on your own.”
Hannah (28), endured child sex abuse and marital rape. It was only when she could not bear the pain she carried any longer that she contacted the DRCC last year. “I did not fully recognise what had happened to me was abuse. I did not know what consent was.
“But with support I learned to recognise what my own experiences were, and even more and to name them. I learned to be in tune with my body and reconnect with it, to be able to recognise and name emotions and regulate them.”
She hopes her hand-written message, “You are not alone”, will encourage many people suffering without support to reach out.
Both women describe themselves now as “much better”. Hannah feels “empowered, much stronger, more positive and hopeful”.
DRCC 24-hour national helpline: 1800 77 88 88.
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