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A survivor refers to anyone who has experienced sexual harm, domestic violence, or childhood abuse.
In 2023, Our Wave experienced extraordinary growth, expanding our community to 41,000 users—more than double the previous year. Alongside this surge in membership, the number of messages of hope shared between survivors also more than doubled, illuminating the profound impact of communal support. We took a significant step onto the global stage by launching our first international custom storytelling platform in collaboration with Dublin Rape Crisis Center. This partnership underscores our commitment to breaking down barriers and reaching survivors across cultural and geographic boundaries. As Our Wave continues to grow, we remain dedicated to empowering survivors with every new story, message, and resource.
We doubled the number of community members to 41k users
We doubled the number of messages of hope shared with the community
Our Wave launched our first international storytelling platform with the Dublin Rape Crisis Center
Our community thrived like never before in 2023, with over 41,000 members connecting on the Our Wave platform. Every new user brings fresh perspectives and encouragement, fueling a global network of survivors who uplift each other with messages of hope. Together, we’re proving that collective strength and empathy can spark meaningful change and ignite healing on an ever-widening scale.
Active community members in 2023
New community members in 2023
Content views all time 2
Content views in 2023
We define a view as a meaningful period in which a user reads or engages with content on our platform, including survivor stories, questions, and resources.
Story reactions all time 2
Story reactions in 2023
Story reactions are pre-written messages of support that Our Wave users can send anonymously to survivors who share their story. This allows the community to show support while protecting a safe space for survivors.
Survivor milestones achieved in 2023
Grounding exercises completed
Milestones mark the number of times our community has engaged with each survivor's story. Each milestone represents the impact a survivor's story has had on other survivors, allies, and the community as a whole.
Storytelling remains the heartbeat of Our Wave, and this year, our impact reached new international heights through our partnership with the Dublin Rape Crisis Center. This custom storytelling platform offers survivors in Ireland a safe, empowering space to share their experiences and support one another. Each story highlights the universal nature of healing, bridging cultural divides and reminding us that solidarity can be found in every corner of the world.
Survivor stories shared in 2023
Survivor artwork shared
Messages of hope posted
Messages of healing shared
Hover over the map to explore
Country
Stories shared 2
United States
445 +79%
Ireland
55
United Kingdom
49 +145%
Australia
30 +76%
Canada
26 +63%
India
12 +100%
Philippines
11 +10%
Germany
7 +250%
Indonesia
5
United Arab Emirates
4 +33%
+40 more
State/Territory
Stories shared 2
California
40 +90%
Florida
31 +94%
New York
31 +48%
Pennsylvania
23 +53%
Minnesota
22 +340%
Texas
21 +110%
Illinois
16 +60%
Ohio
16 +45%
New Jersey
15 +88%
Wisconsin
11 +450%
+36 more
When a survivor shares their story with our community, they have the option of selecting tags that represent their identity and their story. These include gender, race, location in which the story took place, and their relationship to the offender.
The survivor Q&A feature continued to be a cornerstone of support, meeting the diverse and growing needs of our 41,000-strong community. As more users engaged, we expanded our panel of experts to address an even broader spectrum of questions about emotional well-being, legal rights, and advocacy. This interactive space cultivates knowledge-sharing and reassurance, ensuring that survivors receive timely, compassionate responses that guide them forward on their unique healing journeys.
Survivor questions answered all time
Survivor questions answered in 2023
Question
Views
Why do I get sexually aroused when thinking about my childhood sexual assault?
9,441
I think I might've been groomed and sexually abused as a child, but my memory feels very scrambled. I feel guilty for thinking I might've been assaulted, what do I do?
4,379
Child-on-child sexual abuse (COCSA): Can a victim be older than their perpetrator?
3,298
Can there be medical evidence 10 years later after experiencing sodomy, rape or sexual assault?
2,529
Is it normal for me to miss the person who assaulted me? I even feel jealous when I learn other people get their attention positively or even negatively.
2,276
+18 more
Hover over the map to explore
Country
Questions submitted 2
United States
24 +243%
South Africa
6 +20%
Australia
2
Philippines
2
Bahrain
1
Denmark
1
Greece
1
Ireland
1
India
1
Pakistan
1
+1 more
State/Territory
Questions submitted 2
North Carolina
3
Wisconsin
3
Florida
2 +100%
Pennsylvania
2
Alabama
1
Colorado
1
Maryland
1
New York
1
Rhode Island
1
South Dakota
1
+1 more
With our global user base growing, providing accurate and culturally relevant resources has never been more important. Our Wave’s partnerships with trusted organizations—now including the Dublin Rape Crisis Center—connect survivors to specialized care and expertise. Whether seeking emotional support, legal counsel, or therapeutic services, survivors can access a comprehensive list of referrals tailored to their local context. Through these collaborations, we strengthen our commitment to accessible, high-quality support for everyone who relies on Our Wave.
We define a resource referral as each time a visitor to Our Wave clicks on a link to visit one of our trusted resource partners. These links appear in our Resources hub, in emails that we send to our community, and throughout the navigation of our platform.
Resource referrals all time 2
Resource referrals in 2023
Resource Name
Referrals
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
883 +147%
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
876 +135%
After Silence
675 +67%
Adult Survivors of Child Abuse
589 +55%
me too. Healing Room
576 +15%
RAINN | National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline
539 +56%
Bloom by Chayn
524
National Domestic Violence Hotline
416
me too. Survivor’s Sanctuary
393 +24%
Childhelp
304
+10 more
This report encompasses data collected from January 1, 2023 to January 1, 2024.
All stories and messages written by survivors are used with the survivors' permission to publish.
1 Comparison to the same metric during the previous annual report period.
2 Aggregated metrics from the founding of Our Wave in 2019 to the end of 2023.
3 Community members are defined by unique IP addresses that visit our Community platform over a given period of time. We periodically clean up our metrics to remove IPs from known scrapers, crawlers, and bots.
4 Demographic and tag data from stories submitted directly to the core Our Wave storytelling platform (community.ourwave.org)
Do you have any questions or recommendations about our data? Send us an email at [email protected].
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Equatorial GuineaOur Wave is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and an anonymous service. For additional resources, visit the Our Wave Resources Hub. If this is an emergency, please contact your local emergency service.
