Abuse Victims or Abuse Survivors

Photo of Christina Gleason, Christina Gleason

Posted by
Christina Gleason
Jun 17, 2008

Last week, I wrote a web site review about the online community at PatientsLikeMe: Online Support for Abuse Victims. Although I have no personal experience with abuse, I am a member of the site because of my Generalized Anxiety Disorder , and I have made acquaintances with a number of people who have suffered various types of abuse.

When I asked people to take a look at the site review, it was brought to my attention that some people dislike the term abuse victim, and instead prefer to identify themselves as abuse survivors.

Do you consider victim and survivor to be interchangeable? Is survivor an attempt to sanitize one's abuse history and make it more politically correct? Or is there a distinction between the two?

I can see making a distinction between past and ongoing abuse. Perhaps someone whose abuse is in the past might identify as an abuse survivor, while someone who is still suffering abuse might identify as an abuse victim. The only problem with that is that people who are being abused may not recognise the behavior as abuse, and therefore abuse victim would only be a label applied to them by other people.

Perhaps it has more to do with a state of mind. Someone who has reconciled their abuse as being in the past, someone who is far along in the healing process may be more likely to call himself or herself an abuse survivor. Someone who has not been able to put their abuse in the past, who may still be experiencing flashbacks, may be more likely to call himself or herself an abuse victim.

I would love to hear feedback concerning this terminology, and I will consider it when writing new articles and editing old ones.

Apr 1, 2009 9:30 PM

Guest :

I do not believe that victim and survivor are interchangeable. I do think that they represent different situations and perhaps different emotional states. I would interpret a victim as someone who has been on the receiving end of something horrible - whether psychological, physical, or both. Saying you're a survivor on the other hand, seems to indicate that one has escaped safely. I think in the minds of the victims (of which I am one, incidentally) and speaking only for myself, the major issue is healing. No one wants to perpetually be a victim. There is strength in the word survivor. Not so much in victim. For those of us who have been victims - we find strength in survival. Just the word alone empowers us and validates our choices to leave our abusers and find a better life for ourselves. It validates our choices and begins the healing process. It's a long road.

Sep 17, 2009 5:22 PM

Guest :

I have been divorced 4 years. Like most victims of abuse I did not realise the extent of the abuse until after the relationship ended. Even though we have 2 children, I make sure to have as little contact with my ex as possible, although when I do have to talk to him he is still abusive. It's not affecting me as much anymore. They are only his words and not the truth. I have educated myself on abusive relationships and have had a lot of loving support from friends and family. Time is an great healer and at this point in my life I don't feel like a victim anymore. I am a survivor.