Lexi is here to chat!

Lexi from anotherpageisused.blogspot.com is here for a visit! She has some important stuff to say about child abuse!

Tell us a personal story. Change names please :)
My friend, we'll call her Katie, had a dad who drank a lot. He drank from the minute he woke up until the minute he went to be. Katie never saw her dad sober. When he was drunk he would yell at her, throw things, hit things like the walls and sometimes even her. Her mom knew what was happening and she promised to make it stop but it never did. Katie ended up turning to drugs, alcohol, sex, and cutting. She was always high, always had a boyfriend. She didn't know how to make it stop so just found a way to make it disappear. I had no idea how to help her after she told me what was going on. I didn't know what to say, what to do. She didn't think that anything could ever make it better. I started doing research, I HAD to help her. I wouldn't let things continue the way they were. I made sure that she knew I was there. I made sure that she knew that my door was always open. I listened all of the time and offered my advice when I knew what to say. Katie told my everything after that. She's still dealing with her father, she's still dealing with the drink that both she and her father does, but I think that things are a little different now. Now she knows that without a doubt, I'm here for her. Along with her sister and now, even her mother.

Have you had a friend abused by a boyfriend?
I don't have any friends who have been abused by their BF. I can say that I am very glad about that because I would not put up with that. I would never let a stupid guy hurt someone that I love so much.

Have you or a friend experienced the trauma of rape?
I have personally never been raped, but I do know someone who was. It was very hard to get it out of her because we aren't very good friends, but I'm glad that she told me.

What would you tell a friend who was raped?
I would tell her that she needed to tell an adult that she TRUSTS right away. The trust factor in this is very important. Someone may not be able to tell their mom or an aunt or someone like that. They may have to tell a friend of the family, but that's still a very good option. It can be very hard to talk someone into telling, but it's the most important thing to do because you never know what could happen after someone gets raped.

Child abuse is so important to me. Is it to you?
I think that Child Abuse should be an important issue to everyone. More people go through it then people think. They're are so many different kinds, different forms. Form emotional abuse to physical abuse. I've suffered through emotional abuse, and I can say from experience that most of the time, the person who is saying things and hitting, doesn't really always get the effect of what they're doing.

Any last comments?
Child Abuse can be stopped. People need to know the signs for all of the different kinds, so that one day they can help someone because that's all the person wants, someone to help them, to be there, to care.

If you have been raped contact RAINN 1-800-656-HOPE(4673). Or your local police.