A few days ago, I wrote twice about something we don’t talk about enough:
— Children and adults abused at family level, “handled” quietly at family level.
— Survivors abused at church, “handled” quietly at church level.
Since then, my inbox has not stopped.
Message after message.
Voice notes. Emails. DMs.
People telling their stories — some for the first time.
Some have already sought professional help, yet the wound still bleeds.
Some had never spoken about it until now.
Some were just looking for a name, a link, a number. Anything.
I have responded to each one. Helped them find professionals. Pointed them to safe spaces. Reminded them that their pain matters and their healing matters.
But this has also reminded me of something:
Silence is not neutral. Silence is a wound.
When families “deal with it internally,” they don’t deal with it — they bury it alive.
When churches tell victims “just pray about it,” they don’t heal them — they compound the trauma with shame.
We need a new culture.
One where prayer and professionalism walk together.
One where support means therapy, justice, and accountability.
One where survivors aren’t silenced to protect names, reputations, or traditions.
If you’re reading this and you’ve been holding your pain because “that’s how it’s handled” — please know:
You are not a burden.
Your story matters.
Your healing matters.
You deserve more than silence.
And if you’re in leadership — family, church, business — please know:
Covering up abuse is not protection. It’s complicity.
May we all learn to be brave enough to create safe, just, and healing spaces.
#Healing #SafeSpaces #FaithAndJustice #LeadershipWithHeart #NicoleMarara #SurvivorsDeserveMore