Based on the premise that a woman's best defense against sexual assault is to maintain her self-respect regardless of the outcome, the author advocates an ongoing process of emotional growth that begins before an attack and continues through the medical, legal, and recovery phases. Individual sections examine the problems women face before, during, and after sexual assault, especially their own fear, doubt, and shame, and examine socialization, myths about rape, and other factors that perpetuate the self-denigration of women. A variety of defense techniques are also presented, ranging from verbal assertiveness to physical and psychological strategies, together with descriptions of situations in which a woman may need to defend herself. Appended self-defense suggestions and lists of resource organizations, index, and chapter reference notes