Added: 10/20/2007 |
Calling Up The Facts On Chronic MaltreatmentIn the mind of some adults, a child is never too young to be the object of chronic maltreatment. For that reason, a child is never too young to hear about ways to prevent such maltreatment. The following article focuses in on one particular type of maltreatment—sexual abuse. It gives specific ways by which a child of any age can be taught how to avoid sexual abuse.
Still, chronic maltreatment of children can be found among families in all income levels and all social classes. Adults with all types of educational background and all manner of religious beliefs, and adults possessing a diverse range of ethnicities can be found in the circle of abusive parents.
Maltreatment of children does not always come in the form of a physically violent act. Chronic maltreatment can involve psychological or emotional cruelty. A child can be scarred by rejection, verbal abuse, threatening language, constant tension among family members or violent outbursts within the home.
In the area of physical abuse, sexual abuse is most apt to escape the eyes and ears of other adults. In the home, sexual abuse involves any adult behavior that leads to unnecessary sexual contact at any level (from kissing to oral sex to actual intercourse). No adult can legally claim that a child has consented to such behavior.
Sometimes chronic maltreatment can affect a child in a manner unanticipated by the abuser. The affected child might complain of headaches, stomach aches or sleep problems. The affected child might suddenly fail to perform at school as expected; he or she might demonstrate a loss of interest in old and close friends.
Chronic maltreatment can lead to chronic depression. Not infrequently, a child feels compelled to bear the blame for sexual acts in which he or she was forced to participate. In such cases, the child’s guilt grows, just as the child continues to grow.
As the child enters adolescence, he or she might suffer more than headaches, stomachaches, insomnia and depression. Such a child might also need to deal with obesity and fatigue. Parental guidance can help to avoid the occurrence of sexual abuse.
Parents can shield a child from sexual abuse by instilling within the child the ability to distinguish between OK touches and touches that violate the child’s privacy. Parents must provide children with an assertive demeanor, especially as it relates to their own bodies. Like any adult, a child should control his or her own body.
Parents might want to forewarn children about the strategies used by most abusers. Abused children are often told that the violation of their privacy is meant to give them feelings of pleasure. Such children then wonder why they feel uncomfortable about an adult’s sexual advances.
When children feel confused about their feelings, and when they hold doubts about their right to express those feelings, chronic maltreatment of children can proceed unnoticed for some time. Parents need to offer their children the tools that will help them to stand up for their privacy, and to report any violations of that privacy.
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