100 Stabilising and protecting a survivor who wants to report what happened to her
TO THE TRAINER
PART II: THE TRAINING
Stabilising and protecting a survivor who wants to report what happened to her
Aim. To introduce the issue of reporting.
These sessions discuss additional techniques of stabilisation, focusing on how to help a survivor to tell her story without awaking her trauma.
At the end, we will deal with the important question of returning to society. How do we hope to end the story? Can we recreate hope and provide survivors with the resources they need to go back to their families and communities or, if this is not possible, find other ways to continue their lives?
The important point here is to concentrate on resources and on the potential of the survivor. How can we draw on the human rights-based approach and how can community resources be mobilised to support her? How can the woman herself be supported so that she remains grounded, holding on to a little hope and having some faith in the future? If this can be achieved, her story can become healing.
KEY POINT
The story shows that a survivor who reports her story should
• Identify issues that can trigger and prepare for them.
• Avoid strong details that can trigger her.
• Use grounding techniques when triggering occurs.
DISCUSSION
Discussion. Survivors who want to report their experience or file a complaint.
Give examples of what can happen if the survivor is not prepared. For instance, when a survivor is triggered during reporting, she may be incoherent, unable to remember events in the correct order, or even unable to remember anything at all.