High fit

Volume controls how strongly you project yourself into the world. For most of her life, Danielle Lucum kept her volume near zero — hiding what was happening at home, dropping out of college to avoid conflict, suppressing her emotions to keep others comfortable. After surviving the assault, she deliberately turned the volume all the way up: she bought a big truck, got a German Shepherd, took up kickboxing, started telling off men who grabbed or whistled at her, and stood in a courtroom and read her victim impact statement loud enough that the man who raped her felt her presence in the room. The change was total and intentional.