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  • Q&A with Australian Health Practitioners

    How may childhood sexual abuse affect a child in adulthood?

    Related Topic
    Physical, Emotional & Sexual Abuse
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    Thanks

    Ralph Graham

    Counsellor

    Ralph Graham, Counsellor, Psychotherapist, helping those who are affected by:grief, loss, anxiety, phobias, panic attack.And those who have been traumatised by:crime, assault, sexual abuse and … View Profile

    (The question is no doubt meaning to refer to how abuse affects them later as an adult)

    Like any traumatic situation, the effects later in life can be minor or serious. Adults who have been abused sexually as a child may find their sexual relationships to be awkward, unfulfilling or even scary. Some may find they cannot sustain relationships while others have difficulty forming relationships. They may not consciously feel repulsed or fearful about sex but in therapy find that abuse as a child is underlying current relationship problems.  Being afraid to let someone get close to them, lack of trust or not enjoying sex can stem from these abuses.
     
    PTSD
    In some cases a person will find their current lives invaded by painful memories of past sexual abuse in the form of flashbacks (reliving an event in the present) or nightmares or both and perhaps several other symptoms amounting to the condition call Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
     
    REPEATING THE SAME BEHAVIOR
    Some victims of child sexual abuse find themselves doing to their own children some of what was done to them in childhood.

    Clearly the scale can go from personal unfulfilment through to PTSD or repeating the same behaviour so the effects can vary enormously. It is easy to understand that such treatment of a child is likely to affect them in some way.  I believe anyone who has been abused would do well to find a trusted and effective therapist to review these situations. If no emotional ill affects are apparent and the client finds that they have somehow processed these events and moved forward, then well and good and this fortunate situation needs to be accepted by the therapist without uninvited digging. For those who, under expert guidance, courageously revisit these abuses and find painful emotion there, the likelihood is great that  their resolution is going to bear fruit in one’s current life leading to enhanced relationships and an increase in  personal happiness.

    SPEAK TO YOUR DOCTOR
    Contact a recommended specialist or your local GP for advice on someone to see.
     
    The Right Therapist
    I should add that with matters like these, a therapist you do not feel comfortable with is not for you.  They need to win your trust and you need to trust your intuition which I believe will tell you in one session if you have the right person. I would avoid getting into anything too deep in the first session.

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