Contact your local crisis center for emotional support, counseling intakes, getting DNA samples after sexual assault, and legal advice to help you weigh the pros and cons of reporting abusers.

You can locate your community provider facility on RAINN’s website here: https://centers.rainn.org/

Believe it or not, this information can be tough to find. I called the National Sexual Assault Hotline operated by RAINN. Since I live abroad, their system routed me to a random area rep in Bakersfield, CA.

The rep did not know how to help me locate a nearby provider to help me with my questions, which added to my stress and confusion.

I also used the online chat on RAINN’s website, and that rep was very comforting and understanding. She too did not know how to locate a regional resources organization, which was available on RAINN’s own website!

I was able to call a support site using RAINN’s tool linked above. The operation had a victim’s advocate to help people talk about what happened with a caring person who knows about the rules of reporting, a legal advocate, staff attorneys, and a counseling intake line.

It was all free! Hope it helps you.