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Essay on How Therapy Can Help Victims of Child Abuse

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"We knew [abuse of] black kids was reported about twice as often as it was for white kids, and we were concerned that that might be due to racism. We also knew black kids, in terms of economics, were facing a lot of problems that most white kids were not facing," said Washington University social work professor Brett Drake. Rates of reported child abuse are disproportionately high for black children. Many researchers believe that poverty is the main reason black children are twice as likely as white children to suffer abuse (Gray 1). In 2012, over 1,600 children died from abuse. Child abuse is a major problem faced in the United States today, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services over 3.3 million reports of child …show more content…

Usually after a child has endured a dramatic moment in their life that could have a negative impact on them they are immediately placed into therapy. Therapy is supposed to help the child deal with the trauma from their past without pretending like it never happened. However, children differ from adults; meaning that therapist must develop different tactics in order to get into the mind of a child and understand how children think. “It is estimated that seventy percent of school-age children from low socioeconomic areas have witnessed assaults, arrests, drug deals, gang violence, shootings, and domestic violence” (Skybo 263). Emotional and behavioral changes seen in children are usually caused by child abuse. Negative behaviors that can be seen are acting out using aggression, delinquency, poor academic performances, and physical violence towards others.
Jason was eleven when he was presented to a community service mental health center. Jason’s mother reported a history of domestic violence both physical and emotional caused by Jason’s father. Jason’s mother expressed multiple concerns for her son including behavioral problems. It was reported that Jason liked to order his mother around, began to do poorly academic wise, and numerously expressed a sense of loyalty towards his father.
In everyday therapy sessions therapist depend on verbal communications to work through and understand what someone who has been through abuse is dealing with. It has

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