--- title: The Kavanaugh Battle Is Over. The Pain of His Hearing Is Not description: Weeks after the hearing of Judge Brett Kavanaugh and Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, survivors may still be feeling the PTSD of past assaults canonical: https://time.com/5413109/brett-kavanaugh-supreme-court-survivors-trigger-ptsd/ author: Eliana Dockterman article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-10-11T15:23:51.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T21:36:58.242Z article:section: Ideas og:title: The Battle Over Brett Kavanaugh Has Ended. But the Pain His Hearing Triggered Has Not og:description: Why the pain remains, according to experts and survivors og:url: https://time.com/5413109/brett-kavanaugh-supreme-court-survivors-trigger-ptsd/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5b198d2b799d0216/69893b40db2987b503260ccb/brett-kavanaugh-christine-blasey-ford-hearing-6.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3040 og:image:height: 1710 og:image:alt: brett-kavanaugh-christine-blasey-ford-hearing-6 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The Battle Over Brett Kavanaugh Has Ended. But the Pain His Hearing Triggered Has Not twitter:description: Why the pain remains, according to experts and survivors twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5b198d2b799d0216/69893b40db2987b503260ccb/brett-kavanaugh-christine-blasey-ford-hearing-6.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # The Battle Over Brett Kavanaugh Has Ended. But the Pain His Hearing Triggered Has Not > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Inside TIME: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition Inside TIME is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. A closer look at TIME's latest cover and our most compelling stories. Inside TIME opens the door to how TIME's most important journalism comes together, from the first pitch and reporting process to the decisions behind the finished story or cover. 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Inside TIME is the newsletter where TIME's Editor-in-Chief explains cover selection and the editorial reasoning behind major stories. It is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who is the editor of TIME? Sam Jacobs is TIME's Editor-in-Chief. He writes Inside TIME, a twice-weekly newsletter about the newsroom's reporting and editorial decisions. #### Is Inside TIME free? Yes. Inside TIME is a free newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and available at time.com/subscribe-agent.  by [Eliana Dockterman](https://time.com/author/eliana-dockterman/)  ## Eliana Dockterman Correspondent Oct 11, 2018 3:23 PM UTC  Christine Blasey Ford is sworn in before testifying to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington on Sept. 27. Christine Blasey Ford is sworn in before testifying to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington on Sept. 27. Win McNamee—Getty Images  by [Eliana Dockterman](https://time.com/author/eliana-dockterman/)  ## Eliana Dockterman Correspondent Oct 11, 2018 3:23 PM UTC Since #MeToo went viral, survivors have been inundated with stories of sexual assault and harassment on a weekly — and for some stretches, daily — basis. But nothing had evoked memories and pains of past traumas in some survivors, and particularly women, as much as the respective testimonies of [Dr. Christine Blasey Ford](http://time.com/5415027/christine-blasey-ford-testimony/) and [Judge Brett Kavanaugh](http://time.com/longform/christine-blasey-ford-brett-kavanaugh-testimony-pictures/). Senators, television personalities and people across the country heard stories from loved ones that they had never been told before. The Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN) saw a 388% [increase in traffic](https://protect-us.mimecast.com/s/V5%5F6CJ616WhOVVXruVwFj-?domain=rainn.org) on its hotline from the Thursday of the hearing to the following Sunday. That Friday was the busiest day in the organization’s 24-year history. No other single [#MeToo](http://time.com/5401638/silence-breakers-one-year-later-2/) moment appeared to precipitate that sort of deluge. Survivors with histories of sexual abuse are at higher risk of exhibiting PTSD symptoms whenever a #MeToo story hits the news, according to Freyd. But such allegations are often blips in the 24-hour news cycle. The Kavanaugh story dragged on, with an apparent strain on many survivors that the Harvey Weinstein and Bill Cosby allegations did not inspire — and it will continue to do so as he takes his seat on the Supreme Court. Experts say that all that has happened could have lasting effects on the psychology of many victims of sexual assault. “When there’s a national disaster, there’s a period of aftermath,” says Dr. Jennifer Freyd, a psychology professor at the University of Oregon who specializes in studying trauma among survivors of sexual violence. “I think it’s going to be like that. I think we’re talking about a big national health crisis.” For the last decade, Freyd has focused her research on [institutional betrayal](https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/jts.21778), when a survivor feels an organization that is supposed to protect him or her, in the end, causes further harm. Freyd focuses specifically on survivors who are ignored or even called liars by the universities, corporations or governmental bodies where they lodge their accusation of harassment or assault. [One](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27007795) [study](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27007795) of military veterans who had not only experienced sexual assault during their time in the service but whose claims had been dismissed or worse by their superiors in the military, published in the _Journal of Clinical Psychology_ in 2016\. The veterans not only exhibited PTSD symptoms but had increased odds of attempting suicide. “So we’re talking life and death sometimes here,” says Freyd. Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s story affected some survivors who had not relived their own rapes or assaults when reading or listening to other prominent allegations of sexual misconduct in the news. One woman in New York, who requested anonymity because she has not yet shared her story of assault with her family, remembered the sexual abuse she suffered as a child for the first time in decades as she watched Ford’s testimony. “Here is a respectable woman with a family,” she said. “This could have been my teacher in school. That could have been anybody.” Though for many survivors, Kavanaugh’s enraged response was more likely to bring them back to the moment when an assailant has attacked them than Ford’s testimony. While other people who have been accused of similar crimes have quickly departed the spotlight (even if they denied the allegations), Kavanaugh, who himself denies Ford’s allegation that he sexually assaulted her when they were in high school as well as the other allegations of sexual assault against him, sat behind the same desk as Ford to respond — with an indignation that stood out from the lawyer-approved statements that accused men usually issue. Survivor advocate Alisa Zipursky says that watching Kavanaugh cry and claim victimhood brought up personal memories. “My abuser did that to keep me there,” she says. “He brainwashed me into thinking that he was the victim. And I’m reminded of that emotional abuse.” For Sahar Azi, who works in public policy in Oakland, another concern was how little survivors’ pain-filled reactions to the testimonies — on social media and at protests in Washington — seemed to change. Her experience of Kavanaugh’s confirmation brought to mind her childhood in Iran. “I’ve lived in places where women aren’t equal, but here, we’re always allowed to fight back,” she said. “It felt like this time we weren’t allowed to challenge them.” With Kavanaugh now confirmed to the court, it may feel to some people as if the story has concluded. But that may not be the case for survivors. In fact, for those who shared their stories and fought his nomination, his ascension could worsen their symptoms PTSD, anxiety or depression. Karestan Koenan, a Harvard professor who researches PTSD in assault and rape victims, said that Kavanaugh’s confirmation will make many survivors feel as if sharing what happened to them had no impact. She explained, “speaking out and feeling invalidated — or worse, shamed — can be devastating and make all the reactions worse.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5413109/brett-kavanaugh-supreme-court-survivors-trigger-ptsd/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5413109/brett-kavanaugh-supreme-court-survivors-trigger-ptsd/"},"headline":"The Battle Over Brett Kavanaugh Has Ended. 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