Child Abuse And Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

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CHILD ABUSE AND POST TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER PSY336-0903B-03 ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY PHASE 2 TASKS 3 INSTRUCTOR: JAMES GOSS MARY MCCANN September 13, 2009

2 While doing the research for this paper it brought up a lot of childhood memories. As one survivor to another the memories are not good ones. This survivor has come a long way at least I can talk and write about it without falling apart. It amazes me the prevalence of childhood sexual abuse. I always felt I was alone and couldn’t talk to anyone about it, so the fear, guilt, and depression almost got the best of me. Yes at one time I did contemplate suicide. As I started my research it amazed me that: •

1 in 4 girls are sexually abused before the age of 18.

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1in 6 boys are sexually abused before the age of 18

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1in 5 children are solicited sexually while on the internet.

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Nearly 70% of all reported sexual assaults (including assaults on adults) occur to children ages 17 and under.

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Today in America it is estimated that there are 39 million survivors of childhood sexual abuse ( Abel, G., Becker J Mittlman, M. Cunning ham-Rathner, and MurphyW. 1987)

Even within their own homes, children are at risk of child abuse: •

30 – 40 % of victims are abused by a family member.

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Another 50% are abused by someone outside the family whom they know and trusted.

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Approximately 40 % are abused by older and larger children whom they know.

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Therefore only 10% are abused by strangers.

3 (Kilpatrick, D., Saunders, B., and Smith, D. {2003}.) This last prevalence I am going to give you just amazed me. Most perpetrators don’t molest only one child if they are not reported and stopped. •

Nearly 70% of child sex offenders have between 1 and 9 victims, at least 20% have 10 to 40 victims.

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An average serial child molester may have as many as 400 victims in his lifetime.

What kinds of consequence do children and adolescents that were victims? of sexual abuse develop? I know from me being a survivor what I suffered with was fear, depression, withdrawal, fear of the opposite sex. In my research I found the problems children and adolescents suffer are depression, anxiety, guilt, fear, sexual dysfunction, withdrawal and acting out. Short-term effects of abuse beside the frequent urinary tract infection usually occurred within 2 years of the termination of abuse. Some symptoms are regressive behavior such as thumb sucking or bed wetting, sleep disturbances, eating problems or problems in school. When I was 17 I had flashbacks after my step mother sent me pictures of my brother. I develop symptoms of not being able to sleep, I couldn’t eat, I had such a fear of the opposite sex and major depression. Symptoms that lasted for years until my early 30’s. In my readings some people never recover from the affect of abuse. Let’s talk about Post- traumatic Stress Disorders (PTSD). The DSM-IV states that PTSD is as follows:

4 The person has been exposed to traumatic event in which both of the following were present: 1. The person experience, witnessed, or was confronted with an event or events that involved actual or threatened death or serious injury or threat to the physical integrity of self or others. 2. The person’s response involved intense fear, helplessness, or horror. Note: In children it may be expressed instead by disorganized or agitated behavior. ( David H. Barlow, V.Mark Durand: Abnormal Psychology 5th edition) I did not write the whole table out. After the event the victim reexperiences the event through memories and nightmares. PTSD and childhood sexual abuse to me goes hand in hand experience flashbacks, fear, nightmares, guilt ect. Research has shown that child sexual abuse victims are more likely to be the victims of rape or to be involved in a physical abusive relationship as adults. My firs relationship was an abusive one. Thank God I had the strength to get out of it. That same person was killed later by another victim of his abuse. Our book says from a psychological point of view most clinicians agree that victim of PTSD should face the original trauma to develop effective coping procedures and thus overcome the debilitating effects of the disorder. (Barlow and Lehman 1996, Keane and Barlow 2002, Najavits, 2007: Resich, Morison and Rizvi, in press)

5 I know from this survivor I wasn’t able to face him or look at any pictures that he was in my step mother sent pictures of my oldest brother all it did was make me have flashbacks and experience fear and guilt all over again. I do believe therapy is nessasary but start it as soon afterwards as possible and maybe as adults they won’t have to suffer as some of us did. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for child Sexual abuse (CSA). Cognitive behavior therapy for child sexual abuse (CBT-CSA) is a treatment approach design to help children and adolescents who have suffered sexual abuse overcome PTSD. The therapy helps children: •

Learn about child sexual abuse as well as healthy sexually

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Therapeutically process traumatic memories

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Overcome problematic thoughts, feelings, and behaviors

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Develop effective coping and body safety skills

CBT are also used to help the parents learn to cope with their own distress and respond effectively to their children’s behavioral difficulties. The CBT approach is suitable for all clinical and community –based mental health setting and it effectiveness has been documented for both individual and group therapy formats (U.S. Department of Health and Human services). In closing I am very blessed to have my husband and my faith in God and my son Jason and my black lab Sheba and cocoa. I have overcome a lot with their love and support.

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Reference Abel, G., Becker, J., Mittlman, M., Cunningham-Rathner, K., Rouleau, and J.and Murphy, W. 1987: Self reported sex crime man-incarcerated paraphilacs, Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 2 (1), 3-25 Kilpatrick, D., Saunders, B., and Smith, D. (2003). Youth Victimization: Prevalence and implications U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice report. David H. Barlow V. Mark Durand: Abnormal Psychology 5dth edition U.S. Department of Health and Human Services substance abuse and mental services administration center for substance abuse prevention.