European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - June 2, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse Friday june 2, 1989 the stars and stripes Page 9 rape crisis experts say key of therapy is emotional first Aid by Daryl. E. Green Bureau Lan Stuhl. West Germany Mercedes was 16 when she was raped by a 19-year-old Friend of the family but it was years before she realized she had been the victim of a crime. If it would have been today think after in happened i would have definitely known that i had been raped said Mer cedes who requested that her real name not be published. But at the time i was so naive it did t hit me that this is what had happened to not realizing she was a victim Mer cedes today 26 and the wife of an air Force officer never sought counselling. Statistics suggest there arc Many other Mercedess victims who either never re port the crime or choose to Deal with their Post rape problems alone. Although there were More than 200 reported rapes among the . Military in Europe last year members of military rape crisis teams see very few of the Vic Tims directly after the crime. I be been doing this for two years and i be Only responded to four cases myself said sol. Janet a. Mason a member of the five person rape crisis team at the army medical Center in Lan Stuhl. Lan Stuhl s team one of two in Europe is made up of what the military Calls behavioural science technicians mental health Counselor social workers and drug and alcohol abuse Counselor. They serve on a rotating basis and arc on Call to respond to the Hospital s emergency room when a rape is reported. Other military hospitals have on Call Counselor or smaller versions of the Cri Sis team. The lands Uhl team is set up to pro vide Solace and encouragement the emotional first Aid that helps rape victims try to Lead Normal lives once again. Team members also can arrange for further counselling. We re there to support that person in any Way we can Mason said. We re not there to collect the evidence we re not there to interrogate we re not there to find the for those rape victims who do go to a Hospital emotional support is often what they need the most. Feeling alone and violated they must nevertheless wend their Way through a Maze of medical examinations and police interviews that offer Little personal support. Clothes Are taken for use As Legal Evi Dence. Hair and saliva samples arc taken and an internal exam is performed. Blood tests Check for the aids virus and antibiotics arc Given to protect against venereal disease. If the victim was not using a birth control device Steps Are taken to prevent an unwanted pregnancy Mason said. These events though necessary tend to intensify feelings of guilt. After being examined and interrogated the victim often feels like she must somehow have provoked the attack said staff sgt. Jimmy Young a mental health Counselor at the medical Center. Was it the Way they were dressed the place that they were the things that they said the Way they walked they have now a View of themselves As being a bad person All because of this the feelings of guilt and shame and the sense that the world is not quite As Nice a place As it used to appear preoccupy Many rape victims the Counselor said. Ass Daryl e Groen crisis team member fit. Janet a. Mason holds a counsel Lar session at i Jed Suhl. Basically you have an individual who. Because of this attack has been broken Down to nothing said Young who often counsels victims in the imme Diate aftermath of a rape. And it is our Job to rebuild that even those who Don t report the rape like Mercedes wish there had been someone to whom they could have talked. Someone there to hold your hand Mercedes said. There needs to be some body there saying. It s not your fault " putting the pieces Back together can be a lengthy task since rape endangers the victim s sense of personal Security and self esteem the experts said. The person s Basic need for survival is directly Young said. This person is being told by somebody else whether you re going to live or you re going to die. The Security need has been attacked because obviously by the rape itself it s shown that society cannot protect Mercedes can testify to those emotions. After her rape she questioned her ability to Cope with people. She also be came afraid of things that had held no fear for her in the past. If i m Home alone and my husband is gone toy or whatever i Don t worry about someone breaking into the House and robbing and saying. I m going to shoot this woman she said. I worry about someone coming into the House and raping me. I slay away from dark streets or places i Don t know unless i m with eventually some victims of rape learn to become More assertive and in control of their lives. I think i got something positive out of it Mercedes said. When i was 16 or 17 years old. I was not nearly As Strong willed As i am now. I will stand up now for what i want. If 1 were in that situation now. I would punch the Guy soviet vets in . To discuss postwar problems with sex gis by the Sun Francisco chronicle san Francisco four soviet veterans who suffered physical or emotional wounds during the War in Afghanistan have arrived in san Francisco to meet . Servicemen still troubled by the Nightmare of Vietnam. Eugene a Hruschov a 28-year-old former lieutenant exchanged hugs with the americans who greeted him wednesday at san Francisco International Airport. Khrushchev observed that it was one of the first times since 1945 that the world War ii allies met again As friends. It s a great significance american and soviet Veter ans meet together after we finished the War said a Hruschov who suffered emotional problems from his service in Afghanistan. We re trying to find a common the soviets Are part of a 30-Mcmber delegation that first landed in Sashington d.c., and broke into smaller groups destined for the Bay area los Angeles san Diego new York Seattle and Montana. The contingent includes soviet psychologists seeking to icam More about treating delayed stress disorders. Among the visit s ironies soviet Veteran Nikolai Cuvanov. Whose leg was blown off by an american made rocket was met by Brent Mackinnon who was shot by a soviet weapon in Vietnam. I Don t want my kid to go to War and that s exactly what the soviets say Mackinnon remarked. The extraordinary we Klong trip was arranged by Vietnam veterans groups a Washington state peace organization called Earth stewards network and the Esalon Institute soviet american Exchange. Last year Alicr months of secret negotiations Small groups of Vietnam veterans made an initial visit to the soviet Union to Exchange painful stories of living through unpopular wars returning Home to indifference or hostility and enduring Post traumatic stress disorders. During their stay with Host families the soviets accompanied by a video team and a new woman from their nation will explore san Francisco attend a cultural event in Oakland and meet Vietnam veterans in re going to experience glasnost firsthand said Phillip Epps a spokesman for the Esalon Institute. Aware that some americans May resent the soviet veterans Epps said the ability of men seared by War to that Many soviets were suffering the same symptoms of delayed stress that americans Felt after their Viet Nam service. Khrushchev said when he came Home in 1982 he fell unwelcome and unsettled. "1 missed a lot of my combat he said adding he volunteered to return to the fighting but was rejected because of his emotional condition. Comparing the grief of both soviet and american War veterans Khrushchev said we re experiencing the same drug addiction and alcohol abuse indicative of delayed said Vietnam and Afghanistan have parallels because servicemen were affected by the Lack of popu Lar support. As a human being involved in a War that was not justifiable in was very difficult trying to fulfil your said Khrushchev. About i million soviets fought in Afghanistan be tween the invasion in 1979 and the withdrawal this year. It is estimated that 13.000 soviets were killed and 35,500 wounded. About 58,000 americans died in Vietnam. 1950s car Wash May help Wash up Developer s plan los Angeles a where else but in Southern California would a i950s-Stylc car Wash be deemed a cultural the car Wash plus a Gas station and Coffee shop Are in the Way of a Developer s plans to build a mini mall in the san Fernando Valley suburb of studio City. But when neighbors heard of plans to bulldog the 28-year-old car Wash which is built around three 55-fool-Tal steel girders arched in the style of an old Mcdonald s outlet they fought Back. Last week they persuaded the City cultural i Leri Lage commission to temporarily Block the development while the commission weighs arguments that the car Wash which does t even have a name forms the Gateway to studio we in the Valley want to retain some of our culture and said Jack Mcgrath. A political consultant who launched the Campaign to save the car Wash. The Arba group of los Angeles plans to de Molish the car Wash to make Way for a two Story $15 million shopping Center. Company officials refused to comment on the protests last week. About 100 area residents rallied at the Gas station sunday to protest the planned Demoli in the neighbourhood Aren t sure what to make of the fuss. It s not a cultural Monument said resident William Griffis. But it certainly is a Handy place to gel your car
