Rape is rarely reported in Kenya due to stigma and a lack of faith in the police and the criminal justice.
A mental health ambassador has shared the tough times she went through as a sex worker after being raped in campus. Catherine Njeri became a sex worker after being raped in a friend’s room in campus.
The third born in a family of four tried to scream for help but the volume of his sound system was too high and people from outside could not hear her.
Catherine has starred in a porn movie that was allegedly shot for international consumption and was paid Sh20,000.
During an interview with Hot96, Catherine said she was too ashamed to speak up about the rape and tried to cover the pain by dating older men.
“I felt like my worth as a lady had diminished.i lost my self-esteem because i was going through depression.I started going out with older men to fill the vacuum i had in my Nairobi governor heart.”
Catherine said finding men was not much of a hustle for her. She would go out for dinner, then later end up in bed.
“Just look nice, simama stage na utabebwa. I used to go out for dinner, then end up in bed or having sex in a car In a week i would only be in my room thrice, most of the other times i was out sleeping with other men who would not use protection, and never gave a d*mn because i had nothing to lose,” she said.
The beauty got to a point where she did not care about her health status because she was only concerned about getting money. But she later went for a check up and tested negative.
“I’d rather be hiv positive when someone had paid for my services than when someone had forced themselves on me.”
The self-proclaimed mental health ambassador has battled depression, suicidal tendencies and low self-esteem.
She said her depression got so bad, she thought dying was her only option.She tried to commit suicide more than five times.
“I used to search on how to commit suicide. My first strategy was to jump into traffic, hang myself, take poison or drown myself in a pool,” she added.
Catherine now has a Facebook page which she uses as a platform to encourage and counsel those undergoing depression.
“People have ruined my life. Many have taken advantage of me, but when you heal others you will heal more. I want to impact as many lives as possible,” she said.