Warning young girls to not trust their shipmates can't be the best solution a Coast Guard Commander could offer, right?

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I'd like to remain anonymous.

Before I deployed to Bahrain, I was at Medical in pre-deployment training at base Portsmouth VA. The medical officer there was a commander and a woman. She pulled me into her office separately and asked to talk seemingly for no reason. I was 20 years old at the time and she had asked me if I drank alcohol to which I replied no. She rolled her eyes and said, "Come on. I'm sure you do." I again replied, "No, I don't commander." She then explained that she wasn't trying to get me in trouble but warned me that when I deploy not to get drunk with anyone and trust them, no one on my boat that says that they're my friend, not to fall asleep on anyone's couch or assume I'm safe with them.

She said, "The things I've seen coming from there are horrible." Then I realized it was a warning and I just got enraged. I straight up asked her to pull the men in the hallway into her office and tell them not to rape me. And got up and left.

That felt so bizarre. When I got to Bahrain, I immediately saw why she felt the need to do that. But warning young girls to not trust their shipmates can't be the best solution a COMMANDER had, right?

** This anonymous U.S. Coast Guard Survivor Testimonial was originally submitted to “The Pettiest Officer of the U.S. Coast Guard” on Facebook in May of 2024 and re-published by MLAA. MLAA does not know the identity of the author and has not verified any of the claims or allegations made in this testimonial. Light formatting changes for readability, or redactions for PII may have been applied before publishing. **