LivinginFear:MyHorribleLife
Introduction
Ineverthoughtthatmylifewouldturnoutthisway.Iusedtobeahappy-go-luckypersonwhoenjoyedthesimplethingsinlife,likelongwalksintheparkandagoodcupofcoffee.ButallofthatchangedwhenIbecameavictimofstalking.
Stalked
Itstartedinnocentlyenoughwithafewmessagesonsocialmedia.Ididn'tthinkmuchofitandevenrepliedtoafewofthem.Butthingssoontookadarkturnwhenthemessagesbecamemorefrequentandstartedtogetaggressive.TheywouldcallmenamesandthreatenmeifIdidn'treplyquicklyenough.
Atfirst,Itriedtoignorethem,buttheywererelentless.Theywouldsendmessagesatallhoursofthedayandnight,andIstartedtodreadcheckingmyphoneorcomputer.Iwasafraidofwhatthenextmessagemightsay.
LivinginFear
Asthemessagescontinued,Ibecamemoreparanoid.Istartedtoavoidgoingoutaloneandwouldconstantlylookovermyshouldertoseeifsomeonewasfollowingme.Iwaslivinginfearanditwastakingatollonmymentalhealth.
Itriedtoreachoutforhelp,butnooneseemedtotakemeseriously.Theytoldmetojustignorethemessagesandthatitwasprobablyjustaharmlessprank.ButIknewdeepdownthatitwasmorethanthat.Icouldfeelitinmygut.
TheAftermath
Thestalkingeventuallystopped,butthedamagehadalreadybeendone.IwasnolongerthepersonIusedtobe.Iwasconstantlyonedgeanditwasaffectingmyrelationshipswithfriendsandfamily.Ihadtroubletrustingpeopleandwouldalwaysassumetheworstineveryone.
Itwasn'tuntilIsoughtprofessionalhelpthatIwasabletostartrebuildingmylife.Therapyhelpedmeworkthroughmyfearsandanxiety,andIwasabletoslowlyregainmysenseofself.Butthememoryofbeingstalkedwillalwaysbewithme,andit'sascarythought.
Conclusion
Livinginfearisahorriblewaytolive.Ittakesawayeverythingthatmakeslifeenjoyableandreplacesitwithanxietyandparanoia.Ifyouorsomeoneyouknowisbeingstalked,it'simportanttotakeitseriouslyandreachoutforhelp.Don'tsufferinsilence.
