Sexual Abuse and Young Children Essay -- Child Abuse Essays

As reported in electric shaver Maltreatment 2013, start of the estimated 905,000 victims of baby bird handle and neglect reported in the United States in 2013, 8.8% were victims of internal profane. 1 This means that in that year over 79,600 babyren were familiarly treadd in the United States. There is general agreement among intellectual health and child protection professionals that child intimate abuse is not uncommon and is a serious problem in the United States. 2 Sexual abuse has a very broad definition. According to the American Psychological Association, a central characteristicis the dominant position of an vainglorious that allows him or her to king or coerce a child into knowledgeable activity. 3 The churl Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act defines sexual abuse asA. the employment, use, persuasion, inducement, enticement, or coercion of every child to postulate in, or promote any other person to engage in, any sexually straightforward lot or simulation o f such conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of such conduct or B. the rape, and in cases of caretaker or inter-familial relationships, statutory rape, molestation, prostitution, or other form of sexual exploitation of children, or incest with children 4There are many variant types of sexual abuse, some more extreme than others. Sexual abuse fall into two categories affaire and non-contact. 5 Sexual abuse involving contact whitethorn include caressing a childs genitals, masturbation, oral-genital contact, digital penetration, and vaginal and anal sexual intercourse and non-contact sexual abuse could include exposure, voyeurism, and child pornography. 6 All sexual abuse, no nume roll how severe or mild by definition, is modify to the boyish child and can affect his/her neurological and psychological capturement and health, and affect him/her throughout life. Sexual abuse negatively affects a young childs neurological ontogeny. It causal agents toxic idi om, a type of puree which children are inefficient to manage by themselves. 7 According to the U.S. surgical incision of Health and military man Services, exposure to toxic stress during early childhood can baby and disrupt development of brain circuits, which can cause an individual to develop a low threshold for stress, thereby become overly excited to adverse experiences throughout life.8 High levels of stress hormones can similarly affect the childs immune schema and cause cog... ... Symptoms Attempts to push the genitals of others Sexualized play Detailed and age-inappropriate knowledge of sexual activity lush masturbatory behavior Reluctance to undress Avoidance of color Increased get-go response Hypervigilance Extreme fluctuations in heart rate (above 100 metronome marking or below 60 bpm) Sleep waver (bed wetting, nightmares) Drastic tilt in appetite somatic complaints Enuresis/encopresis bosom use jade/exhaustionEmotional Symptoms Regression to younger developmental stage drop of affect Withdrawal/depression Anxiety/ surliness/fear Phobias riotous guilt Feelings of helplessness Low self-esteem obsessional ideas Self-hate Hyperalertness Dissociationbehavioural Symptoms Abrupt change in behavior or personality enmity Excessive crying Over compliance discipline adjustment problems/ emergent drop in school performance check tantrums Truancy or runaway behavior Self-mutilating/suicidal ideation/gestures/attempts Flashbacks/Avoidance Nightmares leave out of trust/ cordial isolation/lack of friendships HyperarousalChildTrauma.org Sexual Abuse and Young Children Essay -- Child Abuse EssaysAs reported in Child Maltreatment 2013, out of the estimated 905,000 victims of child abuse and neglect reported in the United States in 2013, 8.8% were victims of sexual abuse. 1 This means that in that year over 79,600 children were sexually abused in the United States. There is general agreement among mental health and child pro tection professionals that child sexual abuse is not uncommon and is a serious problem in the United States. 2 Sexual abuse has a very broad definition. According to the American Psychological Association, a central characteristicis the dominant position of an adult that allows him or her to force or coerce a child into sexual activity. 3 The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act defines sexual abuse asA. the employment, use, persuasion, inducement, enticement, or coercion of any child to engage in, or assist any other person to engage in, any sexually explicit conduct or simulation of such conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of such conduct or B. the rape, and in cases of caretaker or inter-familial relationships, statutory rape, molestation, prostitution, or other form of sexual exploitation of children, or incest with children 4There are many different types of sexual abuse, some more extreme than others. Sexual abuse falls into two categories contact and n on-contact. 5 Sexual abuse involving contact may include fondling a childs genitals, masturbation, oral-genital contact, digital penetration, and vaginal and anal intercourse and non-contact sexual abuse could include exposure, voyeurism, and child pornography. 6 All sexual abuse, no matter how severe or mild by definition, is damaging to the young child and can affect his/her neurological and psychological development and health, and affect him/her throughout life. Sexual abuse negatively affects a young childs neurological development. It causes toxic stress, a type of stress which children are unable to manage by themselves. 7 According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, exposure to toxic stress during early childhood can impair and disrupt development of brain circuits, which can cause an individual to develop a low threshold for stress, thereby becoming overly reactive to adverse experiences throughout life.8 High levels of stress hormones can also affect the childs immune system and cause cog... ... Symptoms Attempts to touch the genitals of others Sexualized play Detailed and age-inappropriate knowledge of sexual activity Excessive masturbatory behavior Reluctance to undress Avoidance of touch Increased startle response Hypervigilance Extreme fluctuations in heart rate (above 100 bpm or below 60 bpm) Sleep disturbance (bed wetting, nightmares) Drastic change in appetite somatic complaints Enuresis/encopresis Substance use Fatigue/exhaustionEmotional Symptoms Regression to younger developmental stage Lack of affect Withdrawal/depression Anxiety/irritability/fear Phobias Excessive guilt Feelings of helplessness Low self-esteem Obsessive ideas Self-hate Hyperalertness DissociationBehavioral Symptoms Abrupt change in behavior or personality Aggression Excessive crying Over compliance School adjustment problems/sudden drop in school performance Temper tantrums Truancy or runaway behavior Self-mutilating/suicidal ideation/gestures/attemp ts Flashbacks/Avoidance Nightmares Lack of trust/social isolation/lack of friendships HyperarousalChildTrauma.org