I most certainly would! Being raped was not your fault and should not be held against you.If the person you are with cant accept what happened then that is the wrong person.Everyone has some kind of issues.If you look at the statistics you will see the odds of being with someone sexually abused ( man or woman) is pretty high.Don't let what happened define you or your future. Find a good therapist or support group. When you find the one he will accept you for you,warts and all !!!!

I am so sorry that you even have to question this.

I have three children that are survivors. I am trying to teach them that what happened to then is not who they are. They are brave and strong and caring and smart, and all of the positive things that came out of this terrible thing that happened to them. They are not victims, they are survivors. They are supporters. They are leaders that can use what happened to them to help others if they choose. I will say these same things to you.

I try very hard to not focus on the negative they may be thinking, like the feelings you are sharing right now. I will comfort them and guide them if I see them suffering or if they share these feelings with me. As I am with you.

You are not damaged. You are not less desirable. You are a loving, caring young man. And it sounds like you are very scared.

I am not a victim of abuse so I can not fully and accurately understand what you may be feeling. But we do have friends on here that can.

I can honestly tell you that I would not even consider turning my back on or walking away from you for those reasons you stated. Any one who does is doing you a favor by identifying themselves as the heartless person they are.

I hope you find healing and courage in your journey. Love to you.

Yes I would as long as they where open and honest and trying to heal from their abuse... I have two good friends both of whom are gay and both of whom where abused as children... My bff is a gay man who was abused as a child and there is no one in the world that i trust or respect more than him... He is the one person on this earth that i actually trust to babysit my daughter... When my daughter was raped he was right there beside us, crying with us, and holding us up and making us feel safe...!! Just because something horrible happened to us when we where children does not make us horrible... It just means we are stronger because we have had to overcome so much more...!!!

I should mention that i was also abuses as a child, multiple times, by my father and other men as well... And i am married, my husband knows about my abuse but it did not effect our relationship.

I'm a survivor also and would encourage you to get counseling before dating....the damage that is done will affect your relationships negatively and quite likely you'll find yourself rewounded because of many things it Definitly hurts your person picker. You will gravitate to abusive relationships and not see unhealthy signs or act upon them.... So please get help.

It's likely that a lot of us HAVE dated guys who were abused when they were young. The important question, as people have indicated above, is how YOU feel about yourself. Are you "datable"? If you've never been kissed, never gone on a date, something (like a lack of trust? a sense that you are undesirable by anyone who isn't a horrible person?) is likely holding you back from pursuing happiness in a relationship.

Put yourself first, always, friend. You're worth it, and you deserve it. The love will come when you love yourself.

Honestly I would be hesitant.
I have to put this out here - not to discourage you, but to encourage you to better figure your own self out first.
A huge red flag is dating anyone as an adult who has never dated before.
It says to me that you may have many a thing to work on before you can ever lend yourself to anyone mutually or feel comfortable in the presence of another human being intimately.
What have you been doing all this time for your sexual urges?
To me, it seems like you may benefit from counseling.
And it seems odd to me that you found this website and are asking our particular group this question.
I want my children to have healthy meaningful relations with others, so in no way to me someone who was abused is necessarily an exclusion. More so my hesitance is someone who has entered adulthood and has never dated before.

Good luck to you and I do hope you find happiness. One thing I have learned from my experience is that all people need to feel loved an accepted for who they are.

I think part of it has to do with Aspergers and being closeted my entire adolescence. I only asked because I know there are quite a few people in this forum who were not abused as children, and I think a bit of it has to do with still feeling like damaged goods despite having become a mostly-well-adjusted adult.

We are all damaged goods in our own way,no one has led a perfect life.I was a victim of domestic violence for 10 years and I am still embarrassed and while my husband knows none of my family knows.I was not abused as a child but since I am here because my daughter was violated by her cousin I rely on people who have been there to guide me.That sounds bad,like I am taking advantage of your pain.I dont mean it to sound like that.I know for me helping others made me feel better about what I went through. After awhile telling those stories over and over gave me some control and eventually it allowed me to deal with it.My ex is dead now,actually kinda funny how he died.He was an avid fisherman,he loved to fish.Well he had a heart attack 6 months ago while fishing.The most relaxing thing in the world,just sitting there and he had a heart attack.Use your horrible expierence to help others,it may help just 1 person.

I truly from the bottom of my heart feel badly for anyone who felt shamed for his sexual orientation. We all should be loved and accepted for who we are.
Wishing you the best, and good luck.
Single isn't really all that bad tho - gotta tell you! Always we think the grass is greener on the other side. I'm enjoying no one to argue with etc. :-)

I truly from the bottom of my heart feel badly for anyone who felt shamed for his sexual orientation. We all should be loved and accepted for who we are.
Wishing you the best, and good luck. Get some help for healing.
Single isn't really all that bad tho - gotta tell you! Always we think the grass is greener on the other side. I'm enjoying no one to argue with etc. :-)

Children with disabilities (such as ASD) are much more likely than neurotypical kids to be sexually abused. Thank God you have pulled through this, and are taking care of yourself. Aspergers is already a factor in your reluctance to reach out, so you have two hurdles to overcome -- your childhood abuse and your social anxiety. In fact, as I'm sure you're aware, people with Aspergers often blossom later socially, and this, I would imagine, means sexually as well. It's not entirely a bad thing to slow this process down. While heartache is inevitable for us all, it's not everyone who holds back and waits for the right moment to become involved in an adult relationship.

Positive visualization may be very useful for you -- imagining yourself being successful at social interactions can prepare you to succeed, for example. Guided imagery and meditation CDs or MP3s may help you through this process. This is a good place to look: http://www.healthjourneys.com. Art therapy may also be very useful for you.