This week on the Victim Service Center Podcast we are talking about Survivor to Thriver: How Victims of Sexual Violence Define Themselves.

On this episode Emilie Mitchell, VSC Education Coordinator, is joined by Gail Gardner, VSC Speaker’s Bureau Member and Author, and Brandi Godbee, VSC Lead Therapist.

You can listen to this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/9Ln5Tv6PR6I

You can also listen to our episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your Podcasts from!

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Trigger Warning: In this podcast we will be discussing sensitive topics such as Sexual Assault. It’s important to take care of yourself while listening. Some suggestions are listening while you’re in a healthy head space or knowing who you can reach out to if you become upset. Our 24/7 helpline for crisis calls based out of Central Florida is 407 500 HEAL. By contacting the National Hotline at 1-800-656-4673 you can get support and learn about your local resources. There is always someone ready to help.

The Victim Service Center Podcast aims to normalize the dialogue of sexual violence and other social issues through housing discussions with professionals that serve victims and survivors of trauma, and those who have experienced violence.

We are celebrating Start by Believing Day as well as the start of Sexual Assault Awareness Month by debuting the first episode of the VSC Podcast!

On our first episode we are talking about the importance of believing sexual assault survivors for #StartbyBelievingDay. Emilie, VSC Education Coordinator, is joined by Sheronne, VSC Speakers Bureau member and sexual assault survivor, and Johnnie Kramer, a VSC advocate.

You can listen to our Podcast on Youtube: https://youtu.be/90K5Gofn1QI

Or on Anchor (https://anchor.fm/vsc-podcast) or Spotify(https://open.spotify.com/show/4YePgkbsD3hYslQgGWvV0m) ! Coming soon to other Podcasting Platforms.

Trigger Warning: In this podcast we will be discussing sensitive topics such as Sexual Assault. It’s important to take care of yourself while listening. Some suggestions are listening while you’re in a healthy head space or knowing who you can reach out to if you become upset. Our 24/7 helpline for crisis calls based out of Central Florida is 407 500 HEAL. By contacting the National Hotline at 1-800-656-4673 you can get support and learn about your local resources. There is always someone ready to help.

by Molly Kennedy, Microbiology and Cell Science UF grad, VSC Volunteer

As a pre-medical student, I have been exposed to many practices and situations in the medical field. I have also learned a great deal about patient rights and HIPAA laws. After talking to friends and family members about these topics, I learned that a majority of people are unsure or do not know what their rights are in a medical setting. Talking to a health professional can sometimes be intimidating, but knowing your rights can help facilitate conversation and give you the confidence to make sure you are getting the best care possible.

A word you will see in documents and hear a lot in health care is HIPAA, but do patients really know what that is? HIPAA, or the Health Insurance Accountability Act of 1996, is a set of rules and regulations that protect patient’s medical privacy. These rules include things like being able to receive a copy of your medical records and that medical information shared with/obtained by a medical professional that can be connected with you or your treatment (this is called PHI: protected health information) is protected. This confidentiality is so important for patients, especially for survivors of sexual violence. Sometimes after an assault, medical treatment is necessary and having patient confidentiality and privacy laws allows survivors to seek help in confidence when needed. Disclosing an assault to a health professional or anyone can be very difficult, so knowing that anything you say to a heath professional is protected is so important. For more information about HIPAA and a list of your rights under HIPAA, please visit: https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/for-individuals/guidance-materials-for-consumers/index.html

Throughout my years volunteering and shadowing in the medical field, I have realized the power that I have in my medical decisions. Many people who are not exposed to medicine in an academic way may not know the power they have. This power is called patient autonomy. Patient autonomy is the patient’s right to make their own decisions about their care and treatment. This right keeps health care professionals accountable and allows patients to have a role in their treatment. For example, if a physician walks into your exam room and attempts to touch you without washing their hands, you have every right to ask them to clean their hands before examining you. Patient autonomy allows you to choose whether or not you consent to medical treatment. You can suggest different treatments to your physician, you can get a second opinion from another health care professional, you can refuse to allow medical students in your exam room and you can even consent to some parts of treatment and not consent to others. Patient autonomy is especially important for survivors of sexual violence. Having a role in their treatment allows survivors to have a sense of control over their bodies again. Patient autonomy allows survivors to consent to or not consent to medical treatments including a forensic exam. A forensic exam can be exhausting and invasive, so it is important for survivors to know that they can consent to parts of the exam and not consent to others if they wish. For more information about your patient rights, please visit: https://www.ama-assn.org/delivering-care/ethics/patient-rights

Before going to your appointment it is important for you to set boundaries for yourself so you can properly communicate them to your health professional and to research any questions you have for them about your condition or treatment.

For example:

• If you do not want medical students to observe your treatment or treat you, communicate this with your physician: “Dr. ________ I do not feel comfortable having medical students in my exam room and I would not like to receive treatment from them.”
• If you do not like to have a certain part of your body touched during exams, communicate this with your physician: “Dr. _______ I am having this exam today and do not want to be touched here______.” Or at any time during an exam you can say, “Dr. ____ I do not feel comfortable right now please stop the exam.”
• If you have any questions or concerns bring them up with your physician: “Dr. ______, I was researching online and read about a new successful treatment, would it be possible/more beneficial for me to do this new treatment, instead of______?”

Patient autonomy and HIPAA laws are so important for patients to be knowledgeable about. Do not be afraid to use your power and rights to make informed decisions about your health care.

If you need help:

• Victim Service Center 24 hour helpline: (407)-500- HEAL (4325)
• Suicide Prevention Hotline: 1-800-273-8255
• Trevor Project TrevorLifeline: 1-866-488-7386
• Harbor House – Domestic Violence Shelter: (407)-886-2244

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUVtdMqXB3w&t=244s

11 years ago, a stranger broke into my home. After sexually assaulting me at gunpoint, he took me to an ATM where he robbed me of every penny I had. It was the scariest, and most traumatizing, thing I have ever experienced.

As someone who has experienced the court process firsthand, I can tell you a victim’s suffering does not end with the attack. Rather, it continues as we navigate a complicated system which works for the criminal, but not the victim.

I’ve been a supporter of Amendment 6, Marsy’s Law for Florida, since it was first introduced because I believe victims and their families should have the same exact rights and protections as those accused or convicted of a crime.

I believe these rights and protections should exist in the state’s most powerful legal document so there is no question as to what rights victims are entitled to and whether or not they are enforced.

What is in the constitution right now is not enough –

• It is ambiguous and leaves too much up for interpretation.
• Statutes can easily be changed from one legislative session to another.
• The accused have specific protections outlined in the U.S. Constitution, crime victims only receive a single vague sentence in our state constitution with no real means of enforcement.

Amendment 6 presents an opportunity to strengthen these laws, by:

• Ensuring crime victims, or their families in the event of a tragic loss of life, are afforded similar constitutional protections to the accused.
• The rights of the accused would not change or weaken, however, the two parties will finally be considered equal in the eyes of the law.

This means everything to crime victims. We deserve to be seen as those with real emotions who went through a painful ordeal we did not ask for, rather than simply evidence in the case.

My story would have been different had Marsy’s Law been in place.

By acting as his own counsel, my attacker was afforded access to all of my personal information as well as those of my witnesses. He not only stole my identity but made harassing phone calls to me and my witnesses from jail, in the attempts of scaring us out of testifying against him. There was nothing anyone could do – the state attorney and sheriff’s departments’ hands were tied. As wonderful as they were in handling my case, they were only as strong as the law allowed them to be and that meant his right to identify his accuser trumped my right to privacy and to be free from intimidation.

Marsy’s Law would also provide crime victims with a voice, which is something I wish I had in the court process. After all, I certainly didn’t have a say in being attacked, so shouldn’t I at least have one in deciding what happens?

My attacker was originally given four consecutive life sentences given the violent nature of his crime. Recently, though, his sentence was reduced to just 50 years, and he will now be eligible for parole one day.

I was not notified when he was appealing to the Supreme Court. I was not asked if scheduling the re-sentencing hearing on my birthday was a convenient day for me. And my input was not taken into consideration at the hearing, even though the court’s decision directly impacted my safety and the safety of others.

Crime victims all across the state have similar stories. All we are asking for are the same rights given to criminals, nothing more and nothing less.

Crime victims deserve to be protected under our state’s most powerful legal document, just as a person accused of a crime does. Amendment 6 would provide Florida crime victims with many fair, common-sense protections, but there are a few things this law would NOT do.

This law does not guarantee outcomes. It does not interfere with prosecutorial discretion. It does not add a burden to the system. And, it does not infringe upon the numerous protections afforded to those accused or convicted of a crime.

What my attacker did to me was horrific, but I certainly do not believe my rights should outweigh his.

All I want is to be viewed as an equal party, to know that I have a voice, and that my voice matters.

I implore you to remember my story and stand up for past, present, and future crime victims when you go to vote this election season.

By: Danielle Sullivan, Sexual Assault Survivor

To coin a phrase from self-professed researcher/storyteller and TedTalks sensation Brené Brown, Ph. D., I suffered a major “vulnerability hangover” yesterday.  I chose to share the story of my assault with someone; the whole story including the messy parts that I usually edit out.  I chose to be vulnerable with this person, to allow myself to be seen by them and to be courageous enough to show them a real part of me.  Halfway though my story, they had to leave to attend a meeting and promised to call me back later that evening.

The call never came.

I immediately blamed myself.  I felt shameful.  Why did I share so much?  Did I run them off by telling the gritty parts of my story?  Did they think badly of me and decided they didn’t want to talk to me any longer?  Why did I feel that I could trust this person – this stranger?  It continued to haunt me all evening.  Memories of my past misplaced trust in people came flooding back to me.

As an acquaintance rape survivor, trust is something that is very hard for me to attain.  I’ve changed the way I see people and the way I interact with them.  As a result my circle of friends has become painfully small.  I refrain from being vulnerable with people because of what happened when I allowed myself to be vulnerable with “him” – the person who I trusted, who then betrayed my trust.

According to Brené Brown’s research, human connection is essential to living a fulfilled life.  It is what gives purpose and meaning to our lives.  But, in order for connection to happen, we have to allow ourselves to be seen, truly deeply seen – to become vulnerable.

This is the problem I face, and I’m sure many sexual assault survivors face.  For us to be truly happy, we need to be vulnerable and allow ourselves to “be seen” by people.  This is very difficult for us, as we have had people take advantage of our vulnerability.  Rebuilding my trust in people has become something I’ve had to become aware of and purposely work on.

To end with a great quote, Brené says “Vulnerability is our most accurate measurement of courage.  Owning our story and loving ourselves through that process is the bravest thing that we will ever do.”