Sexual Abuse in Children
Last night’s training had a section on parenting a sexually abused child. It truly bothers me… a lot, that 1 in every 4 girls are sexually abused with a large percentage happening between the ages of 8 and 12. Boys fare a little better, only 1 in 7 boys are sexually abused. I knew it happened, I’ve been around awhile but 1 out of every 4? What are people thinking? An 8 year old girl is not much more than a baby!
The American Psychological Association states that “a central characteristic of any abuse is the dominant position of an adult that allows him or her to force or coerce a child into sexual activity.” What makes me the angriest is this is usually someone that they know and should be able to trust. How would you ever trust anyone if your father or your uncle used their power to sexually abuse you?
How would you feel if you found out that the man in your life was abusing your child when he tucked her into bed and read her a story? Or your baby sitter’s boyfriend? Or your neighbor? Better than that, how would you even find out? The child is unlikely to tell you as they have usually been threatened, guilted, bribed into secrecy. The man in your life is unlikely to say “Oh by the way… ”
The only way you will find out is if you are aware of the signs of abuse. Children who have been sexually abused may have many problems from it. Depression, anxiety, regressing to an earlier age (bed wetting, thumb sucking, etc), guilt, fear, withdrawal and acting out. One of the strongest indicators of sexual abuse is a child with inappropriate knowledge of sexual acts, sexual interest, and sexual acting out by that child.
The best defense, in this case, is a good offense. There is a great list of tips to help protect your children at the APA website. The biggest one is to teach your children about their bodies. Let them know that it is not ok for anyone to touch their private parts even an adult. Most important of all, if your child is reluctant or afraid to visit or spend time with an adult, pay attention, talk to them and listen. Believe them!
If you suspect sexual abuse in your own child or any child, report it and make sure that your child gets therapy. Sexual abuse can have effects that reach into adulthood. It is not something to try to deal with on your own.
A good deal of our training centers on exploring our own feelings about abused children, their behaviors and about the family of the children. We do quite a few exercises relating to how we feel about certain cases and how we would react. It really does make you think about what you might be faced with when you have foster children or any children for that matter.
Geesh, 1 in 4! So those 20 cute little girls standing in line for lunch, 5 of them have been sexually abused! FIVE out of 20, 20 out of 100! Can you tell how I feel?
Filed under Training |One Response to “Sexual Abuse in Children”
Leave a Reply
Comments protected by Lucia's Linky Love.
that’s really sad.. it is this sexual abuse thing that i am so bothered. cruel is an understatement to describe these offenders.
in a thirld world country such as the Philippines, there are many cases where the little children can ever be given justice because the wives have no economic power to defy the husbands, or they do not really care when there is so much to be worried about everyday life, when there is no food on the table, for example.