The Importance Of Childhood Sexual Abuse

A home should be a safe place for children. It should be a haven, a hide away from the chaos of school, the pressure from friends, and the hustle and bustle of day to day life. Unfortunately, for many children, their house is far from an escape. It is a place where nightmares become reality, and innocence is pulled out from under them. Sexual abuse is like the monster hiding under the bed, feeding off the fear of its victims. A more clinical definition of sexual abuse can be found in the fifth edition of the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. It defines it as, "Criminal sexual activity, especially that involving a victim below the age of sexual consent or incapable of sexual consent" (American Heritage® Dictionary of the …show more content…
Children may begin to cling to certain adults, such as teachers or other family members. Often times victims may act inappropriately with their peers, not knowing what is socially acceptable and what is not, sometimes even exposing themselves to or touching other children. They might tend to form obsessions with objects or people, to try and gain a sense of control over their lives. Even though children resent the abuse, they may not resent the abuser. Victims might maintain a relationship with the person who molests them due to still feeling a connection to them. Children who are undergoing sexual abuse may be very hesitant to tell anyone, allowing the abuse to go on for years. Victims do this for many reasons, afraid of being looked at differently by those around them, or because they are scared of what their abuser will do if they tell the truth. An article on the website of Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape states, "Initially a victim may say nothing happened. It is not uncommon for victims to delay reporting sexual abuse or to deny that they were abused when they are initially questioned. Reasons could include fear of the stigma associated with the abuse, embarrassment and retaliation. Victims may deny the abuse they’ve suffered, or misrepresent parts of their story. Many victims try to hide what is happening to them by outright denying it when others ask (including classmates who may make jokes, tease or bully them based on the irregular relationship they see or sense), and by making statements with false bravado" (www.pcar.org). Many people blame victims for not coming forward right away, not understanding the thought process behind