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Stalking
Are You Being Stalked?
Safety Suggestions
- Obtain a post office box.
- Have your phone number unlisted, and do not publish your address. Give your address and phone number to as few people as possible.
- Report threatening calls to the phone company and the police.
- While the caller is still on the line, click to hang up, touch *57 (call trace), then click back over to the caller. You may then hang up at any time. Immediately after the call, phone the police to report the call and have them trace the number.
- Seek a trespass warning from police.
- Report threats sent by mail to the FBI.
- If you move, do not leave a “paper trail.” Do not have anything forwarded to your new address. Use a P.O. Box instead.
- When possible, travel in a group or with a friend.
- LOCK ALL DOORS, at home, in the dorm, and in your car. Use dead bolt locks if possible.
- Inform everyone: your employer, family, friends, neighbor, etc. about the stalker and the events taking place. Everyone needs to know to be able to help.
- Save all physical evidence, written materials, notes, letters and envelopes. Take a picture of the stalker, if it can be done safely. This will prove the stalker was in your vicinity. BE CAREFUL. If the stalker feels threatened, the behavior may escalate.
- Document all contacts with the stalker. Give the date, a description of the incident, any witnesses, and if the incident is reported to the police, document the officer’s name and the case number.
Taking Care of Yourself
Develop a support system. It is important to keep in touch with friends who are supportive and understanding. Tell someone about each encounter with the stalker. You can call your local domestic violence shelter, victim witness program or counseling center for support.
You may want to seek assistance. You may begin to experience rage, terror, suspicion, inability to trust anyone, depression, changes in sleeping patterns, exhaustion, and/or frequent crying spells, etc. You are not going crazy! Your body and mind are reacting to extreme stress caused by the continuing victimization. Talking to someone who is trained to work with victims and survivors may help alleviate some of the symptoms that are interfering in other aspects of your life.
You have done nothing to provoke the stalking. Stalking is NEVER the victim’s fault! Know that what is happening to you is not okay, is not your fault and was not caused by anything you have done.
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