In 1976 I was 15 and Jimmy Savile came to our school.
I remember it well. Our sewing teacher had made a 'Jim'll Fix It' puppet, cookery teachers baked celebration Union Jack cakes and buns and the entire school rolled out the red carpet. Susan Parker and I were chosen on behalf of the school to present him with the puppet and pose for the local newspaper.
Yes, in those days it was front page stuff because he was a 'Celebrity'. Today his front page status is for an entirely different reason.
Sexual Abuse Stories
The one thing that I hope has come out of the awful stories of the women, men and children molested, groped and raped by Jimmy Savile and other predatory paedophiles is that these victims must be given a voice and heard.
The victims of sexual abuse not only carry mental scars of the ordeal but also the physical scars in their pelvic floor. A survey by a specialist pelvic health clinic in Holland found that 23% of the female patients reported a history of sexual abuse. Patients with a history of sexual abuse reported multiple pelvic floor complaints ranging from problems with urination (micturition), defecation and sexual response. The non-abuse patients had significantly less pelvic floor problems and usually presented with just one problem, as opposed to the abuse victims presenting with multiple pelvic floor problems.
This is the unreported side of sexual abuse that is indelibly seared into the pelvic floor of many victims that will remain with them for life. We praise all victims for the courage they have shown in coming forward. We also understand why others have not and hope that these recent revelations can bring about a fundamental change. Not only must we offer better protection to our children, women and men but also make sure that no one, no matter how famous or 'well-regarded' in society is allowed to 'get away with it' and silence the voice of the victim.
Whilst the victims might shout - we also have to be prepared to hear them too, no matter how uncomfortable that may be.
Sources
[1] Multiple pelvic floor complaints are correlated with sexual abuse history. Department of Urology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands.