What is it?
Also known as sexual abuse or violence, it occurs when you don’t consent to any sexual activity, but the other person isn’t willing to stop. It is any sexual activity or attention from one person that is unwelcome by the other person. This includes rape, revealing (naked) themselves to you, or making you see images that are sexual. Sexual assault is committed by anyone including someone familiar, like a friend, coworker, partner, relative, etc. Legal definitions of sexual assault differ from country to country so make sure you know your country of residence details.
Types of Sexual Assault
Sexual assault can be verbal, visual, or physical. Some types of sexual assault are:
- Rare or attempted rape
- Sexual coercion
- Pedophilia (sexual contact with a minor, below 18 years old)
- Unwanted touching
- Peeping (spying on someone during have private sexual acts)
- Sexual harassment or threatening
- Taking sexual pictures of someone without consent or by force
- Texting or sending photos of a sexual nature
Mental Health Effects
After the assault, you may feel a range of emotions such as feeling vulnerable, scared, ashamed, in shock, angry, and many more. People who experience sexual assault tend to have long-term health effects such as severe anxiety, stress, fear, depression, alcohol or drug abuse, eating disorders, self-injury, suicide, and so on. It is vital to remember that it is not your fault. If you’re having difficulty coping, reach out to close friends or family for help (they might suggest a therapist). If you don’t want to talk to people you know, look up therapists to talk to and get help.
If you know someone who has been assaulted, offer them help by listening and comforting them. Remind them that it is not their fault. Research or ask about the side effects of rape and use the tools provided to help more. Remember, this is a challenging time for them, and they could be unstable for a while. Try to be understanding and patient until they heal from this trauma.
What is a Rape Kit?
Sexual assault can be verbal, visual, or physical. Some types of sexual assault are:
- Rare or attempted rape
- Sexual coercion
- Pedophilia (sexual contact with a minor, below 18 years old)
- Unwanted touching
- Peeping (spying on someone during have private sexual acts)
- Sexual harassment or threatening
- Taking sexual pictures of someone without consent or by force
- Texting or sending photos of a sexual nature
What To Do If You Have Been Raped?
A rape kit exam is a forensic examination (using technology or science to prove something legally) to collect evidence left after an assault. Evidence must be collected in 96 hours to be most effective, given that the victim hasn’t washed and removed the evidence.
Every country has its own rape kit content. Still, most contain detailed instructions for the examiner, forms for documentation, containers to collect evidence, swabs, floss, items for scrapping, comb, envelopes, and boxes with labels.
The procedure is a long process and usually takes about 4 hours. The examiner collects any object that could be evidence, such as hair strands, foreign objects (like the attacker’s peace of clothing), and more. Any physical injury is documented (photographs and notes of bite marks and bruises) and treated. Biological evidence such as saliva, blood, semen, urine, skin cells, and hair is collected by swabbing (taking a specimen of tissue or secretions) the victim’s mouth, skin, genital areas, and anus.
The doctor will also take samples from the hair (head & pubic) by combing and under the fingernails if the attacker’s DNA is there. Additional samples include, when the examination is complete, the evidence is packaged and labeled to prevent contamination.
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