- Post starter
- #133
Please forgive me if this is hard to follow. I'm running off of less than an hours sleep.
I did go into the hospital last night despite the lack of help from the rape crisis centre, the victims services not answering the phone, and my T being unavailable. I was immediately seen by a triage nurse, who asked what I was coming in for. I told her I needed a rape kit done. Then I proceeded to cry. The nurse was very quiet about it and asked if I was sexually assaulted, I told her yes and she quickly pulled the curtain across to give us privacy. The triage nurse was very nice, rubbed my arm a bit while she was talking to me, which actually made me cry harder because she was being so nice.
She took me to be registered, and then they immediately put me into a room with a bed where I didn't have to worry about someone over hearing what I said. I had two nurses who kept checking on me very frequently, talking to me while they figured out the protocol. Every nurse I had was very nice and kept their voices quiet and calm with me. One of the nurses asked to see the burned initials to see what degree the burn was. As I was showing her I started crying hysterically and hyperventilating. She sat down on the bed with me and talked to me until I wasn't crying as hard. I don't know what she said, but it was her tone that calmed me down.
They contacted a sexual assault centre so I could talk to someone while I waited. The person on the phone asked if I wanted her to come for emotional support to the hospital, so she came in the middle of the night to the hospital. I think it was close to 1am at this time.
The doctor came in and he started asking me questions. He asked if he could listen to my lungs and see the burn. I said I didn't want to be touched at all right then. He wasn't rude or mean about it, he said that's ok and then continued to ask questions before leaving the room. The lady from the sexual assault centre got to the hospital around 1:30am. She sat down on the bed with me and talked to me about what my options were. I ended up being transferred to another hospital in the city that has a sexual assault/ domestic abuse centre. I went with the lady in a cab to the other hospital.
The whole time she talked to me quietly, asking me unrelated questions to help keep my mind occupied. Once we got there she told me that she would come into the exam room with me if I wanted her to, or she could stay in the waiting room - whatever I needed. We waited at the second hospital for the sexual assault nurse to come in. Then we all went down to the SA/DA centre in the hospital. The SA nurse asked me what happened, what I wanted to do (contact police now, or decide in the future), went through a lot of questions with me. She asked me how much of the exam I wanted her to do, she didn't pressure me into doing anything, left it up to me.
The SA nurse didn't get annoyed with me when I struggled to answer her questions or give answers. She was patient and very nice. Got me lots of warm blankets to wrap myself in to feel safer. Wrapping myself in the warm blankets helped to calm me down. She did more bloodwork on me to test for HIV and any STI's. She did a basic exam first to check the burn, and any cuts or bruises. The nurse checked my head and neck to see if any damage was done when I was strangled. Then came time for the internal/external exam. She talked to me the entire time, always made sure I was ok and still with her. She asked again if I was still ok with her doing an internal exam, told me that at any point in time to tell her to stop if I didn't want her to go further.
I was ok, other than shaking for most of it. It got to a point where it was so painful that I cried out and she immediately stopped and came up to my head (which I had buried in one of the blankets). The nurse went on to document the burned initials. She measured, and photographed it. I was offered the plan B pill, which I took. Then I was given a follow up appointment, and some information sheets of things to watch out for. Then the lady who came with me from the sexual assault centre walked me out to a cab she called to take us back to my car at the other hospital. She asked if it was ok if she called me tonight to check on me, that they don't normally do that but she wants to. So I gave her my number.
Right now I'm sitting at work like a zombie. Running on less than an hours sleep, and starting to feel nauseas from the double dose of the plan B pill.
I did go into the hospital last night despite the lack of help from the rape crisis centre, the victims services not answering the phone, and my T being unavailable. I was immediately seen by a triage nurse, who asked what I was coming in for. I told her I needed a rape kit done. Then I proceeded to cry. The nurse was very quiet about it and asked if I was sexually assaulted, I told her yes and she quickly pulled the curtain across to give us privacy. The triage nurse was very nice, rubbed my arm a bit while she was talking to me, which actually made me cry harder because she was being so nice.
She took me to be registered, and then they immediately put me into a room with a bed where I didn't have to worry about someone over hearing what I said. I had two nurses who kept checking on me very frequently, talking to me while they figured out the protocol. Every nurse I had was very nice and kept their voices quiet and calm with me. One of the nurses asked to see the burned initials to see what degree the burn was. As I was showing her I started crying hysterically and hyperventilating. She sat down on the bed with me and talked to me until I wasn't crying as hard. I don't know what she said, but it was her tone that calmed me down.
They contacted a sexual assault centre so I could talk to someone while I waited. The person on the phone asked if I wanted her to come for emotional support to the hospital, so she came in the middle of the night to the hospital. I think it was close to 1am at this time.
The doctor came in and he started asking me questions. He asked if he could listen to my lungs and see the burn. I said I didn't want to be touched at all right then. He wasn't rude or mean about it, he said that's ok and then continued to ask questions before leaving the room. The lady from the sexual assault centre got to the hospital around 1:30am. She sat down on the bed with me and talked to me about what my options were. I ended up being transferred to another hospital in the city that has a sexual assault/ domestic abuse centre. I went with the lady in a cab to the other hospital.
The whole time she talked to me quietly, asking me unrelated questions to help keep my mind occupied. Once we got there she told me that she would come into the exam room with me if I wanted her to, or she could stay in the waiting room - whatever I needed. We waited at the second hospital for the sexual assault nurse to come in. Then we all went down to the SA/DA centre in the hospital. The SA nurse asked me what happened, what I wanted to do (contact police now, or decide in the future), went through a lot of questions with me. She asked me how much of the exam I wanted her to do, she didn't pressure me into doing anything, left it up to me.
The SA nurse didn't get annoyed with me when I struggled to answer her questions or give answers. She was patient and very nice. Got me lots of warm blankets to wrap myself in to feel safer. Wrapping myself in the warm blankets helped to calm me down. She did more bloodwork on me to test for HIV and any STI's. She did a basic exam first to check the burn, and any cuts or bruises. The nurse checked my head and neck to see if any damage was done when I was strangled. Then came time for the internal/external exam. She talked to me the entire time, always made sure I was ok and still with her. She asked again if I was still ok with her doing an internal exam, told me that at any point in time to tell her to stop if I didn't want her to go further.
I was ok, other than shaking for most of it. It got to a point where it was so painful that I cried out and she immediately stopped and came up to my head (which I had buried in one of the blankets). The nurse went on to document the burned initials. She measured, and photographed it. I was offered the plan B pill, which I took. Then I was given a follow up appointment, and some information sheets of things to watch out for. Then the lady who came with me from the sexual assault centre walked me out to a cab she called to take us back to my car at the other hospital. She asked if it was ok if she called me tonight to check on me, that they don't normally do that but she wants to. So I gave her my number.
Right now I'm sitting at work like a zombie. Running on less than an hours sleep, and starting to feel nauseas from the double dose of the plan B pill.
