New Visitors Page
Click here if you are not
a victim or survivor of trauma
Click here if you
are a victim or survivor of trauma
A
note to new visitors who are not victims or survivors of trauma
We would
like to warn you that most of
the information contained in this website's pages may be unpleasant to think
about. Most
of the issues that we address are unavoidably hard-core, because
the North American survivor community - that we advocate for - has experienced some
of the most horrendous forms of abuse and human rights violations known to
mankind.
Beyond being disturbed by the
harshness of some of our website's information, you may encounter another
difficulty: cognitive
dissonance. This occurs when a person who has a
certain, set view and understanding of the world encounters new information that
doesn't neatly "fit" into that person's current wealth of knowledge.
Although temporary, cognitive dissonance can be an unpleasant and irritating
experience. It can bring up unexpected emotions and cause one to
feel dazed. We apologize if this happens to you. Although causing
cognitive dissonance in the minds of some visitors is not our goal, it is most likely to occur if our
information is totally new and unfamiliar to you.
Although our information may
be unfamiliar at first, we assure you that it is real and solid. At this
time, we are ahead of the media in reporting objectively about these
issues. We look forward to the day when many media representatives working
in North America will do the same.
How you choose to assimilate
our information into your personal store of knowledge and information is
totally up to you. You also have the right to completely reject our
information. Although we certainly respect your right to make that
particular choice,
we hope that you will consider working through your temporary cognitive
dissonance, and assimilate our information into your wealth of current
knowledge.
If, after reviewing the
materials on our website, you experience unusually disturbing or intrusive
thoughts, emotions, nightmares, or flashbacks, you may need to contact a friend
or loved one to discuss these strong reactions. If ensuing thoughts, emotions,
nightmares or flashbacks affect your ability to function on the job and interact
with others, you may need temporary professional help. If this should
occur, we strongly recommend that you begin by seeking help from clerical or
mental health professionals who are experienced in working with survivors of abuse and trauma.
If you have any comments or questions
about our website, you can contact us at mail@naffoundation.org. Please type "NAFF" in the subject
line. If
you do not, your E-mail may be regarded as spam.
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A
note to new visitors who are victims or survivors of trauma
This website is designed to educate the greater public about
the issues that many North American victims and survivors of criminally
perpetrated trauma may experience and struggle with on a regular
basis.
If you find any of the information in this website
overwhelming or triggering, we apologize. That is not our intention; and
yet, it can accidentally happen. If it does, we ask that you ask a trusted
support person for help in processing and understanding your reactions to our
information.
Not everyone will agree with some of the information and
statements we include in this website. Although we are comfortably certain
that they are valid, we fully respect your right not to agree with
us.
Some survivors of criminally perpetrated trauma have certain
belief systems and opinions that remain comfortably solid throughout their
lives. And yet, as part of their long-term recovery process, some
survivors may strongly adhere to a certain opinion or belief system, only to
discard or modify it as their recovery progresses. This part of recovery
from severe abuse is both normal and healthy.
As we did through our former PARC-VRAMC website, we will continue
to educate the public about your unique experiences and recovery needs that are
above and beyond those needs you have in common with other trauma and abuse
survivors. We will also continue to honor those individuals who choose to
help you to survive and self-heal.
Our knowledge that many survivors are amazingly alive, paired
with the knowledge that many victims are still being cruelly abused in
unspeakable ways, gives us sufficient strength and motivation to do the work
that is ahead for us.
We will do our best to honor not only the difficulties you have
endured, but also your amazing strengths and talents. We will continue to
rejoice (even when you don't) in the knowledge that you are still alive, and we
will savor the knowledge (even when you don't) that being alive may provide some
of you the opportunity for a more stable, healthy life. We are fully aware
that some of you will not receive such opportunities: our caring and thoughts
are especially with those of you who cannot self-heal or become stronger.
Although we cannot share about the personal experiences and
recovery needs of every single survivor, there are general experiences and needs
that many of survivors appear to have in common. We will share such
information with the public, based on communications we have received from many
of you. If we seem to over-generalize or not be sensitive enough, or if there
are common issues and needs that you believe we are not addressing, we
welcome your comments and concerns. (Please type "NAFF" in the subject line. If
you do not, your E-mail may be regarded as spam.)
You have our word of honor that we will keep specifics
of your communications confidential, unless you ask us to do otherwise. As
more of you share with us, the information we provide to the public will become
increasingly effective and accurate.
Our pledge to you is this: we will continue to speak
out and work on your behalf until a reasonable majority of the public in North
America accepts the reality of your collective experiences and your
above-and-beyond recovery needs.
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This web page was last edited on 08/21/2007.
