Helium Balloon is written about my experience with dissociation and recovery after rape. By sharing my experience, I hope to connect with other survivors and raise awareness and money for the essential work that Cambridge Rape Crisis Centre provide for many rape victims in the Cambridge area. 

After the rape I experienced, part of me was shut away, too hurt to be seen or heard. For years I suffered with anxiety, bouts of depression, and significant PTSD symptoms such as dissociation and irritability. Dissociation was, for me, the feeling of being separate from my body; being a helium balloon, floating above the reality of what was going on. My understanding of it now is that I was too traumatised to come down and face the truth, as well as it being the body's natural response to significant trauma. It was a way of protecting itself from further harm. When I began to listen to what was going on, I was able to write about it, accept help, and begin reconnecting with and healing what I felt was taken from me. CRCC provide essential services to help victims and survivors in doing that.

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