![everyone has a story--how you tell it is up to you everyone has a story--how you tell it is up to you](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81ReWzIplZL.jpg)
Interestingly, that desire to protect is often what entraps us in abusive relationships in the first place. My first instinct had always been to protect others-especially those close to my heart. People I’ve loved for decades would inevitably be impacted by what had happened. Some of you would immediately respond: “Of course not! We shouldn’t silence a victim of abuse to protect the perpetrator’s family.”īut some of you more sensitive types (like me) worry and wrestle with the ethics and human consequences of telling your stories of abuse, especially when they intersect with others’ life stories. Weren’t the feelings of my abusers’ friends and families more important than what happened in the past? Weren’t the reputations of institutions represented by these men more important than my desire to tell my story? I thought about their ministries and reputations. But I agonized over how my truth could affect the lives of those close to my abusers, people I still care about. In telling my story, who would be impacted and how? What if telling my story caused harm instead of good? I wasn’t concerned about my abusers. Knowing that people often respond defensively, I worried: Two years ago, I posted my own story of sexual and religious abuse on YouTube.
![everyone has a story--how you tell it is up to you everyone has a story--how you tell it is up to you](http://img.picturequotes.com/2/478/477738/tell-your-story-because-your-story-will-heal-you-and-it-will-heal-someone-else-quote-1.jpg)
Some people worry that people have been falsely accused. Some people question why the victims didn’t come forward earlier. When women come forward about abuse-sexual, religious, emotional, physical, financial, verbal, etc.-reactions often vary widely.