They are very afraid of being judged. They are afraid of being asked questions about why they went to the attacker's home or how they were dressed.
They are very afraid of being judged. They are also afraid of not being believed.
In working with them, we often tell them that, if their goal is to break their silence, that alone is a big deal; it doesn't matter whether their complaint goes any further or not. If their goal is to see their attacker behind bars, it's harder to make that happen. Regardless, we help victims set a goal that will bring them satisfaction, no matter what the outcome.
We try to make them see that breaking their silence is a huge accomplishment on its own.