The Effect of Childhood Sexual Abuse during Adulthood

Sexual abuse can be hard to define because of the many different forms it can take on, the different levels of frequency, the variation of circumstances that can occur. Until a child is fit to function as a self-supporting and informed adult, we have an obligation not to take advantage of their lack of power or protection to inflict damage, or demand submission to acts that are not in their own best interests within. Children are being abused every day in different countries. While commonly accepted wisdom had been that childhood sexual abuse results in long lasting negative outcomes.

It has been observed that sexually abused children tend to be less socially competent, more aggressive, and more socially withdrawn than non-abused children. A specific interpersonal effect of sexual abuse among children is that of increased sexual behavior. This is prominent when we were

This paper will examine the impact of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) on women’s sexual behavior in adulthood. Childhood sexual abuse has been associated with a plethora of physical and emotional symptoms in women. It has been noted that there is a significant relationship between this maltreatment and the development of abnormal sexual behavior. Some women who have been abused as children are suffering from lack of sexual desire, emotional distress, sexual dysfunction, or engage in risky sexual behavior as they become adults. This paper has two purposes: (1) to provide a broad overview of the research on long-term effects of childhood sexual abuse on mental and physical health and (2) encourage counselors and therapists alike to seek knowledge of this issue and in turn provide victims of CSA with effective methods to overcome and deal with any long-term issues of childhood sexual abuse.

I am not a scholar in psychology. I am however the mother, aunt, friend, and widow of five suicide victims, all of which were victims or witnesses of either child abuse or domestic violence as a child. According to (Bragg, H L.), “Children who have been exposed to domestic violence normally fall into one of three categories; the first one is behavior, social, and emotional problems. The second category includes cognitive and attitudinal problems and the last category is long-term problems.” (2003). This research is reinforced by (Children’s Bureau/ACYF/ACF/HHS), which states that”

The article states there are many forms of childhood sexual abuse. It can be by someone close to you or a complete stranger. The authors go on to state how very important it is when a survivor goes to a counselor that they listen to what troubles they are experiencing and then to start

In the past ten years researchers have increase their knowledge on the understanding of the different effects that maltreatment has on early brain development. A foundation has been set for the neurobiological explanations of children who have experienced sexual abuse in their early years of life. The explanations include areas of physical, cognitive, social, and emotional struggles. There are many different internal and external factors that associate with the way the child develops into adulthood. Variables that can be taken into account are individual factors and environmental factors. For example individual factors consist of children’s temperaments and vulnerability. In regards to environmental factors this contains how caregivers portray abuse along with overall family atmosphere. Some other specific variables associated with abuse are duration, amount of violence, and relationship between victim and abuser. In addition, age has a strong impact on the victim in regards to adult sexual behavior. When a child is abused at a young age he or she is more likely to engage in sexualized external behavior. At the age of six or younger, children have a higher chance to show their abuse through inappropriate and aggressive sexualized behavior. As for older children of twelve and up they lean more towards fear of sex. These children shoe more internal behavior problems as well (Aaron, 2012).

Annotated Bibliography: In this article, the author is making an argument that sexual abuse causes brain development problems in the long run. These children gain “a less flexible state of equilibrium” (Gaskill 37). They then become poor socialized and have problems in regards to emotional and physical health. In order to these children, they need to be helped immediately,

A meta- analysis conducted showed significant correlations between childhood sexual abuse and PTSD, depression, suicide, sexual promiscuity, the victim-perpetrator cycle, and academic performance (Paolucci, Genuis and Violato, 2001). Horwitz, Widom, McLaughlin, & Raskin White (2001) suggested childhoods sexual abuse acts as stress factor that amplifies the impact stressful life events. Spataro and Mullen (2004) looking at childhood sexual abuse survivors over a 20 year period had three times greater risk of having anxiety and acute stress disorders and five time higher rate of personality disorders than controls.

The negative consequences of sexual abuse on children should never be underestimated as it has the potential to damage the child victim psychologically, mentally and physically both in the short term and long term. This has been demonstrated in the findings of studies on sexually abused children. Some studies also conclude that sexual abuse is not a traumatic experience to some children at the time of the abuse. This suggests that there is no lasting effect on these children as it does not harm them. Other studies suggest that some children are resilient as they device some coping mechanism to deal with the

In another experiment, participants did surveys at baseline about self-report of childhood abuse. The National Death Index was used to keep track of the mortality data during the next 20 years. “Women who reported childhood emotional abuse were 22 percent more likely to die during the follow-up period than women who didn't report abuse. If they reported moderate physical abuse, they were 30 percent more likely to die. For severe physical abuse, the increased risk was 58 percent. The more types of abuse reported, the greater the risk of death during those 20 years.” stated by National Public Radio. These results suggest that not only is the abuse establish psychiatric consequences, but women who report childhood abuse also remain susceptible

Implications of childhood sexual abuse are extensive and pervasive (Firestone, Firestone, & Catlett, 2006). Many of survivors’ experience parallels survivors of other types of trauma. Therefore, this paper first reviews a brief overview of trauma responses. In addition, implications of abuse on sexual development, function, and relationships are discussed with emphases on objectification of victims, repercussions of abuse, relations between severity of abuse and subsequent sexual function, stigmatization, and internalization. Lastly, this author briefly discusses some considerations for treatment for survivors.

Couple that with the aforementioned research stating how sexual abuse victims may suffer from cognitive development and may not obtain a decent paying career job, with the pressure he feels from society, his family, and the secret of abuse he is keeping may be unbearable for him to handle and may impede him in his daily life. According to Hart, D. A., (n.d), “Anxiety is clearly the consequence of too much stress acting on your highly vulnerable brain chemistry”. The stress of the secret abuse, unexpected and expected pressure, and maladaptive coping skills are building blocks anxiety disorders and for a crisis to occur. According to Abbass, A., Grantmyre, J., & Kay, R., (2013), “Sexual abuse can lead to a broad range of psychiatric and somatic problems which are direct manifestations of buried, intense and unacceptable emotions, including intense rage toward the perpetrator and guilt about the

Sexual abuse in children has an impact on their development in adulthood. As a result of this horrifying experience, victims may feel ashamed of themselves even though they are the victims and have done nothing wrong. Also victims have an inability to trust adults because someone they once trusted took advantage of them. They may feel defenseless and powerless. Sexual abuse never goes away, as much as an individual tries to block it, it will be a part of them for the rest of their lives.

). There are several possible explanations why some child abuse survivors experience few, if any, psychological symptoms. One explanation is that severe distress may be greater when childhood sexual trauma occurs in the presence of adverse family characteristics, such as parental alcohol problems (Fergusson, Horwood, & Lynskey, 1996). Another explanation for inconsistent findings across studies on childhood sexual abuse is the use of different research methodologies, including the use of very different participants who are drawn from clinical, community, and student groups. Survivors who are surveyed in clinics may report higher levels of distress and greater impairment compared to those surveyed in the general community.

Child sexual abuse has been reported up to 80,000 times a year, but the number of unreported instances is far greater, because the children are afraid to tell anyone what has happened (American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry). Childhood sexual abuse is a traumatic experience affecting the lives of not only the victim, but those close to the victim as well. Many think there is only one person truly traumatized, but in fact, everyone involved is affected. The victim has to deal with their experience the rest of their lives. They may be more at risk for other mental issues as well, including depression. The family involved has to deal with its pain, often causing hardship and discord within the family. This is especially true