Childhood Abuse
Individuals who have been victims of childhood abuse can continue to suffer well passed the cessation of the abuse. Child abuse is frequently unreported by the victim as the perpetrators can often be trusted adults, the victim may feel fear of retribution of punishment or the victim may fear stigma or feel shame with being a victim of abuse. Victims of childhood abuse often also feel that opening up to others about their experiences will cause them further emotional pain and discomfort.
Victims of childhood abuse have a higher risk than the general population of experiencing many other psychological and social difficulties such as:
- Low self-esteem
- Developing damaging addictions
- Difficulties forming strong and healthy relationships
- Developing feelings of guilt and fear
- Difficulties maintaining emotional stability
- Developing post-traumatic stress symptoms
- Sleep difficulties
- Suicidal ideation
- Sleep disorders
Childhood abuse can take many different forms, including physical abuse (hitting and physical violence), emotional abuse (bullying, berating and demeaning a person), sexual abuse (involvement of a child in sexual activity, exploited by a person in position of power, including non-contact abuse) and neglect (failure to provide minimum duty of care). Abuse can range from a one-off incident, to multiple occurrences over the course of many years. Every case of childhood abuse is a serious violation of human rights and is a transgression of trust, duty of care and power by perpetrators.
Steps you can take
At Strategic Psychology we have trained and experienced psychologists who are able to discuss your experiences with childhood abuse, help you to understand what you experienced and how these experiences may be affecting you in your life right now. Through understanding, awareness and self-compassion, it is possible to move forward from the experiences of childhood abuse and accompanying negative emotions to live a meaningful and enriching life.
Contact us at Strategic Psychology via phone, email or drop in to our office to make an appointment to see a psychologist if you have concerns about some of your earlier experiences and feel as if your victimisation is impacting on your ability to live a healthy and meaningful life.
No referral is needed to make an appointment. However, if eligible, Medicare offers rebates on psychological services with a Mental Health Care Plan referral from your GP. In order to access these supports, you can make an appointment with your GP to discuss your mental health care needs.
All forms of childhood abuse are crimes under Australian Law. As part of professional, ethical conduct, your psychologist may be bound by Mandatory Reporting laws to support the ongoing safety of all children.
