We Are Adult Survivors of Child Abuse and Neglect

Childhood maltreatment increases the chances a child will become violent by interrupting normal emotional, social and intellectual development. Children experience rejection and abandonment when their relationships are characterized by insecurity and physical maltreatment. Rejected and abandoned children are unable to form secure emotional attachments first within their family

It has been hypothesized that adverse childhood experiences, especially sexual abuse, may impair a child’s ability to form a secure attachment with parents and peers, which may lead young men to seek alternative ways to fulfill emotional needs that can manifest in adverse, health-compromising, and often criminal sexual behaviors.

Most violence begins in the second decade of life. Adolescence is a time of great change and vulnerability, which can include an increase in the frequency and means of expression of violence and other risky behaviors. Serious violence begins mostly between the ages of 12 and 20. The peak age

This post concludes the recommendations of the Task Force on Children Affected by Domestic Violence. Children who are victimized by trauma are often unable to develop or experience mastery and sense of self, or to separate themselves psychologically from the violent physical experiences that produced their trauma. New research suggests

This post is a continuation of Part 1 where I am presenting recommendations from the Task Force on Children Affected by Domestic Violence coordinated by the Massachusetts Advocacy Center. These findings and subsequent recommendations are an excellent model for the school systems of America.

I read an outstanding paper on working with traumatized children in the school system. It is too much to cover in one post, so I have broken down the discussion and recommendations into three articles.

A combination of individual, relational, community, and societal factors contribute to the risk of child maltreatment.[1] Risk factors are contributing factors – not direct causes. As I list these factors below, think about your own experiences as an adult survivor of child abuse or know of someone who has been abused.

Children who experience maltreatment are at an increased risk of adverse health effects and behaviors as adults – including smoking, alcoholism, drug abuse, eating disorders, severe obesity, depression, suicide, sexual promiscuity, and certain chronic diseases. See my posts titled National Scope of Child Abuse – Parts 1, 2, and 3.

To better understand what happens to young children, it helps if the types of abuse and its consequences are spelled out. We all think we know how to define abuse and what happens as a result of that behavior, but it is also useful to read specific characteristics of each.

When I was struggling with one crisis after another in therapy, trying to get my life back on track, there always seemed to be something that would happen to upset me. When that happened, I reverted back to my old ways of coping (isolating and binge eating) until I felt