Stop Child Abuse Now (SCAN) - 1078

Tonight's special guest is Dusty Farrah Cooley from Nettleton, Mississippi, a survivor of childhood sexual abuse, incest, and rape. "Looking back," she writes, "it's extremely difficult to understand how I survived it all. But I did, and with God's help, of course." She goes on, "I believe that speaking out concerning my abuse/rape is what 'my calling' is." Sexually abused from the ages of 8-15 years of age, Dusty reports she did what do most 'disturbed' children do at this age. They act out. "And that's what I did. I got into fights at school, resulting in being expelled. I was labeled a 'trouble-maker' by my teachers and parents." She got no help. "Nobody reached out to me during those years. Why, I even wrote a story concerning a young girl being sexually abused by her best friend's father, and still, nobody caught on. But I eventually made a turn around, when I accepted Jesus as my Savior. I finished high school and became an RN." Dusty Farrah describes herself as a Beautiful Survivor, writing, ".. it's kind of weird hearing myself say 'survivor.' Because for years I remember just remaining in bondage. Never would I have considered myself as a survivor. For as long as I can remember, I self-medicated, cut and put myself down." She continues, "I guess you can say I hated myself, even more than my abusers. But that was the OLD Farrah. I'm a fighter now." In fact she describes herself today as a warrior and conqueror. "I'm in a new place now, and I love where I'm at. I love where I am in my life now. No longer do I look at myself and see defeat and warfare."