Cyanea jellyfish, North Sea, Author Ole Kils olekils@web.de (CC BY-SA 3.0 Unported, GNU Free Documentation License)
Jellyfish are equipped with stinging tentacles used to paralyze, capture, and kill their prey. The largest known specimen, the lion’s mane or giant jelly, has tentacles which can reach 120 feet in length. That is longer than a blue whale.
The sting of a jellyfish can be agony. In humans, that sting can cause burning and blistering of the skin, difficulty breathing, changes in heart rate, chest pain, abdominal cramps, vomiting, muscle spasms, numbness, weakness, and collapse.
The tentacles can sting, even after a jellyfish has died.
The Tentacles of Abuse
Like jellyfish, abuse has long tentacles. Rather than extending into deep water, those tentacles extend across the years. But their sting can still be agony. Like the tentacles of jellyfish, the tentacles of abuse can paralyze, capture, and in some cases kill.
Real Wounds
Whether we suffer with physical ailments and visible scars or with depression, anxiety, and PTSD, the wounds stemming from our abuse are severe and real. We are not weak. We are not malingering.
It is, in some ways, easier when our wounds can be seen by the naked eye. Burns are recognizable as such. By contrast, the wounds of many abuse victims cannot be bandaged or sutured. Invisible, those wounds can yet be deadly.
Long-Term Damage
Because it was inflicted early in our lives, while we were most vulnerable, the damage done by abuse is long-lasting and multi-faceted. Victims must endure it for decades, across the full range of life activities. This can be exhausting.
Eventually, we may feel overwhelmed by anxiety or depression, as if we were drowning; may feel trapped by our past, despite our best efforts; may feel wrongly that ending our lives is the only way out.
Swallowed Whole
The prophet, Jonah felt something of this. He had been directed by God to preach to the people of Ninevah, known for their ferocity. In an attempt to avoid what seemed certain death, Jonah booked passage on a ship headed in the opposite direction.
He did not get far. To calm a storm which threatened the ship, Jonah asked to be thrown overboard, and was swallowed whole by what the Bible calls “a great fish”.
We all know the story. Jonah prayed for deliverance, agreed to carry out God’s command, and three days later was deposited – alive – on Ninevah’s shore. His mission to the city proved successful.
These days, people dispute the details of the story. The lesson, however, is clear. Jonah’s task was as much about his own faith, as it was about the spiritual welfare of Ninevah.
“ ‘I called out to the Lord, out of my affliction, And He answered me; Out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and You heard my voice. For You cast me into the deep, Into the heart of the seas, And the floods surrounded me; All Your waves and Your billows passed over me…Yet You have brought up my life from the pit, O Lord my God’ ” (Jonah 2: 2-3, 6).
With God’s help, we can survive abuse. He walks with us through the darkest nights and the stormiest seas. God can find us, even if we have been swallowed whole.
Jellyfish, by the way, are susceptible to a variety of predators. These include marine birds like gulls, large fish like sharks, swordfish, and tunas, sea turtles, and other species of jellyfish. Medical attention is highly recommended. But a sting can be treated with vinegar in a pinch.
FOR MORE OF MY ARTICLES ON POVERTY, POLITICS, AND MATTERS OF CONSCIENCE CHECK OUT MY BLOG A LAWYER’S PRAYERS AT: https://alawyersprayers.com
ANNA WALDHERR A Voice Reclaimed, Surviving Child Abuse 
Thank you
Always glad to be of service.
I thought this was a lovely article in the sense of bringing in about the jellyfish and abuse and it’s tentacles. When I was a young christian praying with my friend I had an image of an octopus over the baptist church I was attending, over the years I have experienced spiritual abuse in the church on the premise of their not understanding about abuse victims. At the time I was certainly overwhelmed as I did not understand or even know the extent of my abuse. But you are right over time Jesus brings us through each part intact. He goes to the core and even to our memories and the emotions attached. I can remember thinking in my naive thoughts that I would come through in a couple of years …. ha! Are we ever cured? I used to think like that but now I accept the wounds, the thorns and rely on God to give me strength. God Bless Anna …. jacky xx
I’m glad you liked the post, Jacky. Some are healed from abuse, and I rejoice with them. Like you, I lean on the Lord, knowing He will sustain me despite my wounds. God bless and keep you. ❤
Reblogged this on Memoir Notes.
Thank you Anna for this message of hope for victims of child abuse.
Thank you for the positive feedback, Lynette.
Blessings,
A. ❤
Reblogged this on Cyber Support Group.
I’ve never related sexual abuse to a jelly fish sting but more like being swallowed by Jaws and the pieces spit out. Good analogy Anna. Reblogging so as to spread the word.
Thank you for your encouragement, Sue. God bless you, in your own work to spread the Gospel.
LOVE this so much–thank you, always, for speaking to the legitimacy of invisible scars of abuse. The pain is everything you describe, lifelong for many, and crippling… I just want out–that is my continual cry to God as I beg Him to “make it go away”. It is exhausting to deal with daily. God bless you.
I’ve been there, too, Shadeau. ❤
I’m so sorry to hear that, Anna–difficult to welcome company in such a “club” ❤
An Excellent example, and very good writing, my Dear Anna! The simile of the Jelly Fish is Really Very Good.
As are the Lessons You bring out:
We may feel overwhelmed by anxiety or depression; …may feel wrongly that ending our lives is the only way out.
Jonah’s task was as much about his own faith, as it was about the spiritual welfare of Ninevah.
And the Culmination:
With God’s help, we can survive abuse. He walks with us through the darkest nights and the stormiest seas. God can find us, even if we have been swallowed whole.
…
May all this speak to many hearts, and Help them Live. Hearty Regards to You. 🙂
You are always so kind to me, Swami. May God watch over you. ❤
The Same, For Ever, for You too, my Dear Friend! 🙂
Reblogged this on lovehappinessandpeace and commented:
An Excellent example! The simile of the Jelly Fish is Really Very Good.
Some excerpts:
We may feel overwhelmed by anxiety or depression; …may feel wrongly that ending our lives is the only way out.
Jonah’s task was as much about his own faith, as it was about the spiritual welfare of Ninevah.
And the Culmination:
With God’s help, we can survive abuse. He walks with us through the darkest nights and the stormiest seas. God can find us, even if we have been swallowed whole.
It is sad, we live in a fallen world. But praise be to God, we can all be redeemed. I don’t know how to ‘like’ your posts because they discuss very sensitive matters, but I read them and you are commended for this wonderful ministry of hope. 💟
You are very kind. As you say, God through Christ offers us a chance of redemption. In this fallen world, that is a priceless gift. ❤