Paul G is a survivor of complex and early organised child sexual abuse both within his family and in the Anglican church and is what he calls a ‘late rememberer’. Paul describes the debilitating physical and mental impacts of early and ongoing organised child sexual abuse and the tragic outcomes for himself, his siblings and family. His struggle to work out what happened to him has led him to numerous healing modalities that have helped Paul to heal from such deep damage. Paul describes the compound trauma that child sexual abuse caused and recounts his experience with the Royal Commission giving evidence at case study 42 on the Anglican Church in Newcastle in 2016. In particular, his physical and sexual abuse by serial paedophile Anglican priest Peter Rushton during his childhood was devastating. Paul’s courage in speaking about what happened to him, and his determination and perseverance in restoring his self-worth and mental health and recovering his memory, shines through in this remarkable interview.

Content warning and Ethics

The content in the following interviews contains distressing accounts of childhood sexual abuse. If you experience distress, please reach out for help:

1800 RESPECT: 24 hour phone support 1800 737732

LIFELINE: 24 hour phone support 13 11 14

BLUEKNOT Help Line: 9am-5pm phone support 1300 657 380

KIDS HELPLINE: 24 hour phone support 1800 551 800

RAPE CRISIS CENTRE 24 hour phone support 1800 424 017

The Survivor Story Project is funded by the Marist Brothers Australia in conjunction with its aim to engage in restorative justice processes for survivors of child sexual abuse in Marist schools in Australia. The Survivor Story Project has ethics approval from the University of Newcastle Australia, ethics approval reference number: H-2019-0195

The names of the participating survivors are their own except for CQT who opted to use a pseudonym.

Episode 3: Recovering from Complex Trauma and the Power of the Human Spirit

The Survivor Story PodcastBy University of NewcastleDec 18, 2020