Insights from the 2024 Human Trafficking Awareness Panel

The 2024 Human Trafficking Awareness Panel in January was an incredible evening of powerful testimonies, inspiring triumphs, and remarkable transformations. Our panelists poured their hearts out with their personal healing journeys and professional expertise.

If you missed this powerful evening, we offer a recording on our YouTube channel, where you can revisit every story of hope and journey of triumph.

What We Covered at HTAP 2024

We began the evening with our panel introductions, in which we discussed the theme of the evening: Healing Through the Rethreaded Process: What a Survivor’s Journey can Teach Us All. So much of the talk surrounding human trafficking consists of how to escape, but few people talk about what to do afterward. What does life and the road to recovery look like for the survivors? That’s what we dedicated this year’s Human Trafficking Awareness Panel to discuss.

Our panelists explained the importance of addressing human trafficking. Human trafficking is the use of force, fraud, or coercion to perform a sex act for profit.

5% of human trafficking is kidnapping, while the other 95% is exploitation of a vulnerability.

100% of the women who Rethreaded has helped have come out of their human trafficking experience with severe complex trauma.

Only 20% of women make it out of human trafficking.

The panelists then shared stories of resilience and healing. These impactful testimonies illustrated the power of repurposing trauma into positive action. This transformation takes time and daily effort but does not have to be daunting. Few people can improve their lives by 100% at a time. However, striving for an achievable goal, like 1% daily improvement, can significantly affect your progress.

The panelists then discussed the Rethreaded Process, outlining the pathway to healing and potential. During this discussion, panelists emphasize the power of hope and its correlation to healing. Without hope and belief in a better future, change is impossible. Survivors of human trafficking must hope for something to reach their goals.

The discussion concluded by outlining transforming pain into potential and finding purpose after trauma. Readiness to accept help and love are essential to repurposing trauma. On the survivors’ side, being willing to receive help and love opens the door to triumph. For those wanting to help, being available and willing to extend love and help to others is how you guide others to healing.

The evening ended with a fantastic Q&A session, where we heard questions from the audience. While our panelists did not have time to answer every question, we took the time to compile our most frequently asked questions and answer them in this blog.

The 2024 Human Trafficking Awareness Panel was a fantastic event filled with impactful stories of healing and hope. Thank you to everyone who attended and worked hard to make this evening successful.

Human Trafficking Awareness Panel FAQ

How does the brain react when it’s retraumatized? How does your brain react when you are making progress, and something hard happens?

The human brain naturally seeks out patterns to follow and repeat. With a traumatic event, the pattern can be a repetition of destructive tendencies and processes. Unfortunately, this can be a significant barrier to hope. A cyclical destructive pattern can begin to feel like your destiny, leaving you feeling trapped forever.

However, the brain was designed to remember how to heal itself. Despite seemingly hopeless situations, the brain still understands the necessity and methodology of healing. Our brains know what it is to be seen and known, so they will search for healing paths and work to bring about healing.

The process of reorienting your thoughts and captivating your actions starts with refocusing your thoughts on truth. Hope seems far away if you believe a lie about yourself or your situation. However, if you focus on what is true, you can have an anchor for the hope of healing.

What is the Rethreaded Process?

The Rethreaded Process transforms life’s challenges into opportunities by focusing on five principles: Openness, Community, Purpose, Vision, and Time. These principles work together to help individuals grow, reach their potential, and expand their sphere of influence.

Where does trust come into the Rethreaded Process?

Trust is the process of taking responsibility and seeing beyond your situation and drama. Trusting that you can handle your situation and that your trauma will no longer have control is essential to breaking the cycle of blame and shame.

Trust is built within community. Individuals and the company that surrounds you should cultivate openness. Your circle of influence is critical to reclaiming your purpose and expanding your potential. The right people around you can encourage you on your journey and hold you accountable as you transform. Trust is a discipline that you must practice by trusting safe people.

Finally, you must trust the process of time. Moving from trauma to triumph is a long haul; it will take time and daily effort. As you put in the work, trust that the hard work and effort will transform you over time.

When a woman wants to leave the life, how many beds are there in Jacksonville? And are there beds always available?

Having a safe place to sleep is so important for the healing process. Unfortunately, there are not always beds available to help those in need. However, the number of available beds is growing. There is much overlap with drug and alcohol abuse or substance disorders, so there are some alternatives with halfway homes and other rehabilitation facilities. In many cases, timing affects whether someone gets a bed.

How would you recommend giving someone help who doesn't want it or doesn't realize they need it?

The first step is to love them. The person must recognize that they need help and be willing to receive it. By loving someone like a human being without shaming them, you open the door for them to receive the help they need. Treat them with dignity, respect, and demonstrate your love by walking with them in their struggle and letting them know you're available. Often, love is best shown through showing up or being available to take the call.

When someone recognizes that they need help, do your best to supply a list of resources available to them. Give them our information or another ministry in Jacksonville to give them as many options as possible.

Lastly, don't give up on them. Set up your own support system and determination to walk through their journey and wait patiently as they make progress. Encourage them in their stumbles, rejoice with their triumphs, and stand by them throughout the entire journey.