You may be feeling scared, confused, shocked, numb, or angry. There's no right or wrong way to feel.  

If something has just happened to you:

• Try to go somewhere that feels safe for you
• Stay warm (you might be in shock)
• See a friend or someone
• Tell someone you trust what happened

If you don’t want to tell a friend or family/whanau member yet contact us or the Helpline - Safe to Talk.  

However, you are feeling, just remember this is not your fault and you are not alone.

If you're in danger or you need urgent medical attention, call 111 to talk to the Police or ring an ambulance or go straight to your nearest Accident & Emergency (A&E).

It's up to you whether or to not to make a report to the Police. No-one else can or should make that choice for you. For your information, this is what happens when you contact the Police. 

If you make a report to the Police, a doctor will perform a checkup to gather any forensic evidence like DNA from hair or body fluids.

If you are unsure yet whether you would like to make a report to the Police but think you might at some point, go to our nearest Sexual Abuse Clinic where a doctor can undertake a medical examination to gather forensic evidence for the future.

If you do want forensic evidence to be collected, attempt to attend the Sexual Abuse Clinic or Police as soon as you can and within 72 hours if possible.

If you would like forensic evidence to be collected, try not to:

• eat or drink
• smoke
• wash
• brush your teeth
• change your clothes
• pack up the place where it happened.

This is to preserve the maximum amount of evidence as possible.

If you have already done these things don’t be concerned as there might still be forensic evidence to gather. If you are going to change your clothes, put the clothes you were wearing into a clean bag without washing them.

It might be difficult to believe immediately, but if you have been raped, you could be at risk of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), or pregnancy. We can support you with this.

We can help and support you. You can go to our local medical centre that specialises in sexual abuse -  Atawhai Clinic or you can go to the Police.