These effects are not permanent, but they can cause serious suffering and reduce the enjoyment of sexual life and intimacy. Fortunately, even if a person does not actively work on sexual healing, as they recover from the effects of violence, sexual symptoms will decrease.
Sexual symptoms after rape or other sexual violence are common and understandable. Sexual violence is not just a betrayal of human trust and feelings, at its core it is aimed at destroying the sexuality of another person.
After rape, some people begin to avoid sexual activities and refuse to express their sexuality. Often the reason for this is that they are afraid of losing control of their body or showing their vulnerability to another person.
Other people, on the contrary, begin to show increased sexual activity, which was not previously characteristic of them. Perhaps they do this because they feel that sex has lost its meaning for them. Some people try to regain their lost sense of control over their bodies by repeating unpleasant sexual situations over and over again.
No matter what your reaction to sexual abuse is, you need to remember that sexual healing is an important part of your recovery, the process of returning to normal life.