If you are a target of assault or abuse:

• Know yourself. Get in touch with what you want from your relationships with friends, family, and acquaintances.
• Define your limits. Communicate clearly and assertively your wants and desires in all your relationships. You have the right to control your own body.
• Most acts of resistance are so quiet and subtle, that you may not realize that you actually avoided an assault. Attackers look for signs that their target will comply easily and without a scene. Body language, whether your hands are encumbered, balance problems, disability and age are all issues that come into play. Think about how you can increase your ability to resist in ways that impede your life as little as possible.
• Know that your have the right to be assertive and defend yourself. It is not "unfeminine" or "unmasculine" to make your needs and desires known.
• Act immediately with a clear negative response when someone does something to you that you don't want. If someone is pressuring you or treating you disrespectfully, don't worry about hurting his feelings. After all, he is not paying attention to your feelings.
• Trust your feelings or instincts. If you feel that a certain person or situation is dangerous, act on your feelings.
• The moment that you realize that the situation is out of your control, all bets are off. Your goal at that point is to get away and to a safe place where you can call for help--even if it means pretending to comply, or even complying with what the assailant is demanding of you. Bottom line: survival, survival, survival. Try to keep thinking, strategizing and looking for avenues of escape.
• As soon as you can, write down everything that happened, with as much detail as possible. Call the SARA hotline immediately for support and guidance.

If you are a witness to assault or abuse:

• Go to "Becoming an Ally" for more information.