Rejected, Love-Obsessed and Erotomanic

Stalking is insidious, isolating and terrifying when it happens. Many victims are not believed or taken seriously and this needs to change.

I am not going to describe in detail about my stalker, due to my own safety. But I want to be able to speak up and speak out about it. 2017 was a very horrific year for me and I am just now feeling a TAD bit like myself again. It didn't matter how often I changed email addresses or phone numbers — they managed to find me. How, I have no idea. They followed me when I went to the grocery store. They knew more about me than I exposed to the average person. They even knew about a few of my friends. Even after those six months of them being around, the fear of what it's like to be stalked has never completely left. Every time I get a creepy feeling like somebody might be watching me, I panic a little. When my windows are open and a door slams in the wind. Even when I notice somebody keeping pace behind me in an isolated area. But I can breath again. And I can speak up. Well, more like write it because I don’t really have anyone to speak to about this.

Stalkers are not a homogenous group. They have varying reasons and motivations for what they are doing, which can change over time. Stalking is about obsession. It’s clear that when people fixate and stalk another individual, they are psychologically unstable.

So if you’re wondering why I changed my snapchat? Here. My phone number? Here. Unluckily, I had to change my car and license plates. But it helped me. And every time a stranger sends me a friend request on Facebook, or an anonymous commenter writes something fishy on my blog, I wonder if they are testing the waters, seeing if either of us are ready for the terror to begin anew.