Sexual
Exploitation Victims/Survivors
 If
you have been sexually or romantically involved with a professional who was originally
helping you, then you may now be dealing with a complex set of issues and emotions.
Mental health and medical professionals, counselors, social workers, clergy, and others
who enter into a helping relationship with you have made a covenant to act in your best
interest and not exploit or abuse you. This is true for others such as attorneys,
educators, emergency/crisis counselors, victim service personnel, and law enforcement
professionals as well. In a professional-client relationship, there is an inherent
imbalance of power. Depending on the relationship you have (or had) with the
professional, this imbalance of power, combined with the natural development of feelings
of trust, intimacy, and emotional dependence, along with phenomena known by psychologists
as "transference", can place you in a very vulnerable position in relation to
the professional. Professionals are required to maintain boundaries with you
and to not exploit your vulnerability, dependence, and trust. When a
professional does have a sexual or romantic relationship with you as his client or former
client, it is considered to be professionally unethical and (for many professions) illegal
behavior and the professional bears full responsibility for any harm that
results. There is no such thing as "mutually consenting adults" in such a
situation, since the exploitation of your emotional dependence is not ethically considered
to be true "consent" (this viewpoint on "consent" is supported by laws
in some states).
This web site has a lot of resources for
you.
AdvocateWeb provides no consulting or professional counseling or legal advice
(note our disclaimer). We are strictly an information
service. Through reading this information, we hope this helps you begin to
sort out the issues you are dealing with and we hope it might help you along on your road
to recovery.
Browse around this web site, read, learn, reflect. The information
presented represents the thinking of many professionals, ethicists, theologians,
counselors, legal experts, and fellow victim/survivors.
1.
Is there a problem?
Look over this list of questions by Estelle Disch, Ph.D. from BASTA!
Boston Associates to Stop Treatment Abuse
"Is There Something Wrong or
Questionable in Your Treatment?" . . .
2.Learn
more about sexual exploitation. Read:
Tell Me More...
"When Professionals Have Sex with Their Clients/Patients/Students"
3.Then
read:
Information for Victims and Victim Advocates on Sexual
Exploitation by Counselors and Therapists from the the Public Education
Work Group of the Task Force on Sexual Exploitation by Counselors and Therapists.
4.After
that, check out all of the:
Information and Resources
we have
found for you.
5.If
you wish to find peer support, need to talk to someone, or share your experience, come
visit:
The Coffee House
6.Join
one of our e-mail discussion lists:
Sexual Exploitation Recovery
E-Mail Discussion Lists
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