CHILD ABUSE

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When you are young, parents, guardians and adults have a responsibility to look after you and care about your welfare. They have a responsibility to protect you and ensure that you are safe and healthy. They are not meant to hurt you or look the other way when someone else is.

Child abuse is the physical, sexual or emotional mistreatment or neglect of a child.

There a four main forms of child abuse:

Emotional

“I feel like no one loves me. She loves my brother but has no time for me. She calls me useless and stupid even when I try to do well. Why can’t she be nice to me? She hates me so much, I bet she wishes I was never born. She says I am always in her way and that dad doesn’t want me around either. But where can I go?”

Emotional abuse is when an adult or parent constantly puts you down and and makes you feel worthless and even tells you they would rather you wern’t alive.

Neglect

“Dad is a joke, he was drunk again last night. You can’t talk to him when hes like that. He has no interest in anything but drink. He spends his dole on drink, sometimes theres nothing for lunch or dinner. I have to steal food from boys in my class, i feel bad doing it but i do be starving. Why doesnt he care that I have a gigantic hole in my school shoes and the boys in my class mock me? Wish mam was here.”

Neglect is when a parent or guardian doesnt take care of your needs. They do not provide food, allow you to access education, medical attention, safe shelter or socialise with others.

Sexual

“He would come into my room when mam was at work. He would say he wanted to show me how much he loved me. He would begin touching me down there. I never wanted him to. He said it was my fault for making him love me so much. I hated when mam went to work. It was all my fault and mam would never believe me. He threatended my little sister so if I didnt do what he asked, she would get hurt too. I couldnt let that happen.”

It is NEVER your fault.

Sexual abuse occurs when someone makes you do sexual things by tricking, scaring, confusing or threatening you. They can touch you , violate you by removing youu or make you touch them.

Physical

“He got so mad at me. His boss called last night, they have no work again. He pushed me and slapped me. He wouldnt leave me alone. Kept following me when I tried to get away from him.”

Physical abuse is when an adult hits, bashes or forcefully touches you.

If you were abused as a child or teenager you may be suffering from some of the following effects:

  • Psychiatric Disorders such as Depression, Bipolar disorder, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Anxiety and OCD
  • Eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia
  • Dissociative Identity Disorder
  • Severe anger
  • Trauma
  • Addiction
  • Unable to form and maintain long lasting relationships
  • You may have long lasting poor physical health
  • Trouble with police-in and out of prison

This is just a small sample of the long lasting effects of child abuse.

Most people who experience child abuse benefit from counselling. We have a number of practitioners who have vast experience working with victims of child abuse.

Phone or Text us on: 087 0680424

Help is available.