BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — A recent allegation of sexual assault is making national headlines and stirring up a lot of emotions for proven survivors of assault.
Experts want them to know there are resources available to help.
Mary Brennan-Taylor from the YWCA encourages survivors of sexual assault who are having a hard time... to ask for help and, "reach out to someone who may have been there for you when you were sexually assaulted yourself that would be your...your support network."
Brennan-Taylor also recommends staying off social media and avoid reading or watching stories that trigger anxiety. Instead she recommends you, "think about some grounding activities that you may have found helpful in the past. Maybe it's yoga. Maybe it's meditation. Maybe it's going for a walk." She says stick to healthy activities and avoid alcohol and drug use, "that may be temporarily useful in calming, numbing anxiety but makes things so much worse in the long run."
According to the national sexual violence resource center: less than three percent of rape allegations are found to be false. Brennan-Taylor says if you are raped, report it immediately and go to a nearby emergency room. She says, "an advocate would be called to be present with you and you can get HIV prophylactic medication within 72 hours. Within 96 hours you can have certainly a rape kit done and within 120 hours there would be pregnancy prevention medication that would be provided."
She says you can also reach out to the YWCA to set up counseling. The hot-line number for Niagara County is 716-433-6716 and for Erie County it's 716-834-3131.
