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Sexual abuse survivor starts Empowered to Heal to support victims

Florence Morning News - 3/27/2017

FLORENCE ? Jennifer Robinson was a victim of sexual abuse three different times before the age of 18.

Robinson was molested at just five years old. At 15 and 17, she was raped. Following her horrific experiences, Robinson went through a period of bipolar depression and her memories of the sexual trauma were affecting the people she loved and cared for the most.

"You ultimately have to make the decision that you want help," Robinson said. "You have the power so that you can heal and be the person that you want to be."

After nine years of counseling, Robinson was able to return to school at 29 years old where she got her bachelor's degree in sociology and a master's degree in marriage and family therapy. She began working for a crisis agency but noticed there was a gap in the transition between getting initial help and following through with the full support a victim may need.

"Crisis intervention is wonderful but it doesn't tap into the spirit of survivorship," Robinson said. "There is some follow-up after sexual abuse with crisis intervention, but not past 90 days. What a lot of survivors need is that long-term support."

As a sexual abuse survivor herself, Robinson felt the need to create an organization that provided that long-term support for other abuse victims. In 2014, Robinson created the organization Empowered to Heal where she and her fellow volunteers mentor and support others who have been victims of sexual abuse.

Since its inception three years ago, Empowered to Heal has assisted approximately 20 victims ages 18 and older by providing counseling and mentoring services, education and support group information. Robinson said a big reason she started the program was because of her own experiences and wishing she knew about similar support groups so she could seek help sooner.

"I didn't know I had the support then. A lot of people don't know they have the support," Robinson said. "They're beat down and believe that everybody is against them. I thought that."

Robinson and volunteers mentor victims by first accepting their experiences as truth and standing by the victims as they work past their sexual trauma. Another big challenge in the healing process is the victims' belief that they are at fault for their sexual abuse and that if they had done something different, they may have been able to avoid the encounter.

"It is not your fault. None of it is your fault," Robinson said. "I don't care what you were doing or what kind of situation you were in. It's never your fault for someone to approach you and touch you without your consent."

It was a long, difficult journey for Robinson to overcome her experiences with sexual abuse. After walking through it and emerging rehabilitated on the other side, Robinson has dedicated herself to helping others through the same journey.

"Survivors are really special people," Robinson said. "This is about helping survivors move to the next level. I need to be that support. I need to say, 'I believe you, I love you, I support you and I'm here for you.'"

For more information about Empowered to Heal, visit their website at empoweredtoheal.org.