A report on the counseling center for male patients
Why is there for offer for men?
Sexual violence towards men? That’s impossible! In public this topic will gladly be denied, since according to societal roles, men are considered as the „strong sex“. So, it often happens that men cannot handle the experience so well and it leads to increasing shame and uncertainty.
Because all human beings are different, traumatization has a different effect on each person and most adult men are not seen to have been victims of sexual violence in their past. Some are sociable – others rather withdrawn. Some are clingy – others have no relationships. Anyone who finds himself or herself in a difficult situation because old memories come to light for him or his partner needs help – no matter what sex he / she has.
Because all human beings are different, traumatization has a different effect on each person and most adult men are not seen to have been victims of sexual violence in their past. Some are sociable – others rather withdrawn. Some are clingy – others have no relationships. Anyone who finds himself or herself in a difficult situation because old memories come to light for him or his partner needs help – no matter what sex he / she has.
In the past, sexual harassment has been increasingly reported by boys within church institutions and private schools. As a result, affected men have broken their silence and made their traumatic experiences public. In these situations, they increasingly turned to the women‘s counseling centers for lack of alternatives. The lack of such facilities for men is also due to the taboo of „sexual violence“ towards men.
Was ist die Männerberatung?
About ten percent of all men have been sexually abused once or several times in their lives. Ten percent who have long kept a secret with them and now have the opportunity to talk about their past. Counseling for male victims of sexual and domestic violence offers what women have been seeing for a long time: an open ear. Although, there was a project for men in 2012, it existed only until the beginning of 2015 due to the financing. In 2016, the project was accepted into the budget by the Schleswig-Holstein Landtag and the Ministry of Social Affairs, Health, Science and Gender Equality and was re-used as of the end of 2016.
Among other things, the men‘s counseling center‘s offer includes anonymous telephone or personal counseling, stabilization aid during a crisis, the setting up of self-help groups and the counseling of relatives or partners.
There are two women and one man in charge of counseling, and you can choose whether you want female or male support. In the consultation you decide for yourself what you want to talk about. Depending on the needs, one-on-one informative discussions or even longer consultation processes are offered as a bridge to the start of a therapy. The offer is free and anonymous upon request.
Text und Fotos: Bieniossek
