Healing Together

Book excerpt: Sex is such an intimate topic historically wrapped in shame and when someone shares they were sexually abused, we may not know how to respond. With recent #MeToo and #ChurchToo movements, we are learning just how many men, women, boys, and girls have suffered sexual abuse at the hands of a trusted person, often family members or leaders in the church. Sexual abuse is rampant in modern society and now--sometimes many years later--sexual abuse survivors are sharing their stories. Anne Marie Miller is a survivor of childhood clergy sexual abuse and has shared her journey toward healing with audiences all over the world. After speaking with thousands of survivors and their loved ones, she saw the need for a fundamental and practical guide for helping supporters of sexual abuse survivors understand the basics of abuse, trauma, healing, and hope. Drawing from her own experience as a survivor and evidence-based research, Anne addresses these questions and more in Healing Together: What is sexual abuse? How can I help survivors? Who are predators and how do they groom victims? How does trauma affect survivors? What happens when someone doesn't remember the details of their abuse? How does abuse wound the physical, emotional, and spiritual health of people who have been abused? When and how should authorities be contacted? How do you talk to your children about sexual abuse? What are the warning signs of abuse? Is healing possible? Whether you are a spouse, a family member, a friend, or a church leader looking for easy-to-navigate resources to understand and support sexual abuse survivors, you'll find answers and hope in these pages.