It can seem like all the stars have to align perfectly for survivors to exit trafficking situations and pursue lasting freedom. Along the way, they navigate countless roadblocks that keep them from getting housing, health care, legal assistance, and other services they need to heal and thrive.
From more than two decades of working with and for survivors, Polaris knows that those moments of alignment don’t have to depend on chance. When communities build strong referral pathways and share responsibility for walking alongside survivors, the constellation of support grows stronger and brighter for everyone.
Through this blog series, survivors share how connection transforms possibility into freedom. Their stories illuminate the pathways of support that help survivors move from crisis to stability — and show where we still need to build together.
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The Missing Piece
A conference on human trafficking changed my life.
At the time, I was in ministry, and I knew human trafficking was a real problem. A friend and I found a relevant conference and decided to attend to build our knowledge, skills, and new connections.
But something shifted during lunchtime. As the speaker shared, I felt hot tears begin rolling down my face. When my friend asked me what was wrong, I whispered, “They’re telling my story.”
I had never considered that I myself had been trafficked. I knew I had been in a bad situation, where every decision, every movement, every breath felt like it belonged to someone else. Now I was trying to help others — but where I always had an answer for others, I realized I didn’t have an answer for my own struggles. It all finally made sense after figuring out the missing piece: I had experienced familial trafficking at an early age.
That day, I talked to so many people at the conference. I learned about Polaris and other organizations supporting survivors. I started to get involved with the Collaborative to End Human Trafficking. And I embarked on a healing journey like never before.
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Footsteps Toward Freedom
One of my biggest challenges was dealing with legal and financial issues resulting from trafficking. Even though I was technically “free,” I was chained by debts I didn’t create, ruined credit, and a legal system that seemed like a fortress. For so long, I put off dealing with it. It felt like a death sentence, like I would always have these issues and there was nothing I could do about it. I felt shame when I thought about reaching out for help. And my freedom felt fragile — like a gust of wind could blow it all away.
These issues finally came front and center when I couldn’t get housing because of identity theft and credit abuse during my trafficking. I didn’t know where to turn for help. But Polaris bridged that gap, connecting me to service providers who could assist with my legal and financial needs.
The legal advocate I spoke to listened not only to the facts of my story but also to the fears behind them. She helped me understand legal terminology and find a path forward out of the tangled web of my situation. I felt a weight lift from my chest — a weight I’d been carrying for so long, I’d forgotten it was there. It wasn’t just about the legal documents but about having someone in my corner who understood the system and believed in my right to exist within it safely.
Working with a financial counselor helped untangle the web further and gave me a sense of agency. It was painstaking work, but for every small debt resolved, for every step we took to rebuild my credit, I was taking back a piece of my independence. The day I was able to open a bank account in my own name — and only my own name — was a profound victory. It was more than an account; it was a declaration that my life and my labor were my own again.
Trauma robbed me of my power, and well-meaning sympathy sometimes unintentionally kept me in that powerless place. But these providers didn’t offer pity. They offered partnership and practical tools. They treated me as the expert on my own life, and they brought their expertise to the table to help me rebuild it. They didn’t just file a motion or clear debt; they helped me regain the legal standing and financial footing to walk through the world on my own terms — to be truly, independently free.
Purpose and Passion
Today, I’m not just surviving — I’m thriving. Professionally, I’m a social worker, and I now find purpose in doing for other people what Polaris did for me: bridging gaps to housing, food, and resources. My life experiences also serve as a testimonial to them that change is possible. We are not what has happened to us, and it does not have to dictate who or what we become.
I’ve also continued working with the Collaborative to End Human Trafficking and have engaged with Survivor Alliance and other survivor-led groups. In these settings, I’m not a victim but an expert leader who matters and makes a difference. I have a passion for training others, from nursing and social work students to judges, attorneys, and other professionals.
I wouldn’t be in a position to pay it forward like this without Polaris and others meeting me where I was, showing me the possibilities, and helping me to a place where I could take the lead in making decisions about my own life.
Survivors all have different stories, and one size does not fit all. We are the experts in what we have experienced — and what we envision for ourselves matters as we heal.
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