The best way to get back on top. (ON MY MIND).(Maria Hanson)(Brief Article)

To overcome a traumatic event, says former model and assault victim Maria Hanson, you must learn to take matters into your own hands.

* You've heard the saying "time heals all wounds." But after being viciously assaulted 15 years ago, I know that's not always the case. When disaster strikes-like the terrorist attacks in September or being violated like I was-you don't just naturally bounce back, as people like to think. I've learned from my experience that the best path to recovery is to be as active a participant as possible in your own healing.

I was 24 years old and working as a model in New York City when my former landlord, Steven Roth, who had unnerved me in the past by walking into my apartment unannounced, hired two men to grab me on the street and cut me with razor blades. The attack left me with more than 150 stitches on my face and abruptly ended my career. Over time, the wounds healed, but the psychological damage was still there. My attackers and Roth were eventually convicted, and afterward, I saw a therapist for about a year. I also earned a degree in film and television, landed a job with a well-known New York City director, and sold my first screenplay. I was back on my feet...or so I thought.

Then, five years ago-nearly a decade later-I was stunned to find myself once again haunted by the incident. Images returned to me in my dreams, making it hard to sleep, then invaded my thoughts when I was awake. A debilitating depression descended on me, and there were many days when I could not get out of bed.

But the scariest part was not knowing what was happening. Then one weekend, while talking a short bus trip, I started talking to a Vietnam veteran who was sitting next to me. He said that I might be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a psychiatric illness that can develop ...