How can I move on?

Being a victim of crime, or witnessing a crime, can be a very scary and frightening experience, whether you are a child, a young person or an adult. Remember everyone reacts differently to crime.

This content has been written for children and young people. If you’re looking for information for over 18s, visit our Help and Support information.

How you react can depend on lots of factors – such as what happened to you, the kind of person you are, the support networks you already have and the experiences you’ve had in your life. While some feelings – such as anger or fear – are more common (particularly just after a crime has happened), there are no rules. So whatever you’re feeling is fine, and how you react is personal to you.

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How long will it take until I feel better?

Some people are able to get on with their lives immediately, while for others it can take weeks, months or years to begin to pick up the pieces, or talk about how the crime has affected them. We know that dealing with your feelings can be difficult, but most people find that talking about it helps. That’s where our specialist trained workers can really make a difference.

We’re there to listen to you, to provide you with emotional and practical support and advice, and to help you cope with crime and to move on. You can find details about our services near you on this website, or you can ring our Supportline on 08 08 16 89 111 to find out more about the support we can give you.