D
Dali
Guest
Six weeks ago, my very close 20-something yr-old ENFP pal was verbally abused and then brutally raped by her bastard boyfriend. I found out through a close mutual friend, called her and insisted on her coming to my city for a while so she could mentally de-stress. She adamantly refuses to go to the authorities because she believes it was a one-time thing spawned by too much drink and "doesnt want to ruin his life".
She's a teacher but also writes quite a bit. Here's some of her recent writing (below):
"For the past few weeks, I have felt a strange absence of feeling. Each day resembles the next and no momentous rage, not even pain. Just cold cold night and day. I even forgot which day it was and the name of some characters. Somewhere under layers of soft chocolate, I know that something happened but somewhere on the surface there’s this imperious voice of reason digging the drill: ‘Keep going. Turn left, right, now stop the engine. Chase away the thoughts before they catch up with you. Face check: passed. Voice check: passed. Everything in order, now go out there and be your usual. I’m watching you.’
You’d think that everything would be turned upside down. Well no. There is only the most vast and glaring nothingness. Dreams are heavy, dark trances that diffuse through the night without leaving a trace"
She's all smiles and refuses to let me see her pain but, once in a while, she would let her guard down and I'd see the maelstrom of hurt and fear lying underneath and it hurts, it really hurts to see that. What should I do? How can I show her I'm there for her? How does one help a friend get over that most heinous violation? (Especially now that she's gone back to her city where the now ex-BF also lives.)
She's a teacher but also writes quite a bit. Here's some of her recent writing (below):
"For the past few weeks, I have felt a strange absence of feeling. Each day resembles the next and no momentous rage, not even pain. Just cold cold night and day. I even forgot which day it was and the name of some characters. Somewhere under layers of soft chocolate, I know that something happened but somewhere on the surface there’s this imperious voice of reason digging the drill: ‘Keep going. Turn left, right, now stop the engine. Chase away the thoughts before they catch up with you. Face check: passed. Voice check: passed. Everything in order, now go out there and be your usual. I’m watching you.’
You’d think that everything would be turned upside down. Well no. There is only the most vast and glaring nothingness. Dreams are heavy, dark trances that diffuse through the night without leaving a trace"
She's all smiles and refuses to let me see her pain but, once in a while, she would let her guard down and I'd see the maelstrom of hurt and fear lying underneath and it hurts, it really hurts to see that. What should I do? How can I show her I'm there for her? How does one help a friend get over that most heinous violation? (Especially now that she's gone back to her city where the now ex-BF also lives.)