Child Sexual Abuse

What is sexual abuse?
Sexual abuse is any contact between a child and adult for the adult’s sexual stimulation. This includes inappropriate touching, showing pornography, sex and exposure of body parts to the child. Sometimes a child will be physically hurt during the act, but even if there are no marks, a child can be traumatized by sexual abuse.

How do you recognize sexual abuse?
Unlike physical abuse, the physical signs of sexual abuse are not obvious and with some children there are no signs at all. Often emotional or behavioral signs are more commonly seen. If there are signs, below is a list of some of the signs you may find.

Physical Signs

• Pain, swelling or itching in genital area
• Bruises, bleeding, discharge in genital area
• Difficulty walking or sitting, frequent urination, pain
• Stained or bloody underclothing
• Venereal diseases
• Refusal to take part in gym or other exercises

Emotional Signs

• Poor peer relationships
• Unusual interest in sex for age
• Drastic change in school achievement
• Runaway or delinquent
• Regressive or childlike behavior
• Fear, anxiety, depression and/or anger
• Younger children who have been sexually abused may have poor self-esteem and difficulty with close relationships.
• Older children and teenagers may act out their hurt by using drugs and alcohol or having sex.

For additional information about signs of abuse visit the Darkness to Light website.

What do you do when you suspect a child of being sexually abused?

When a child tells you that he or she is being abused, you should:

• Avoid denial and remain calm. A common reaction to child abuse is shock and denial. However, if you display denial to a child, or show shock or disgust at what they are saying, the child may be afraid to continue and will shut down. As hard as it may be, remain as calm and reassuring as you can.
• Don’t interrogate. Let the child explain to you in his/her own words what happened, but don’t interrogate the child or ask leading questions. This may confuse and fluster the child and make it harder for them to continue their story.
• Reassure the child that he/she did nothing wrong. It takes a lot for a child to come forward about abuse. Reassure him or her that you take what is said seriously, and that it is not the child’s fault.
• Call your local child protective services center. If you suspect that a child is being abused, you need to call your county child protective services agency. In Milwaukee county, that number is (414) 220-SAFE. To find the child abuse hotlines in other Wisconsin counties, click here or call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-CHILD. It is better that you do not handle the situation on your own. Contact your county child protective services agency. Often adults fail to act on their suspicions out of fear. For more information about this see Common Concerns About Reporting Abuse.
  

Helping a child heal

You can help reduce the long term effects of sexual abuse by:

• Believing the child;
• Telling the child it is not their fault;
• Encouraging the child to talk with you or a counselor about the abuse and their feelings; and by
• Building self-esteem by pointing out what they do well

Ignoring abuse will not help and it will not make it go away.5 Every community has different kinds of support groups and therapy to help a child or teenager express their feelings and connect to other people. Self-esteem has to be based in something real and won't come overnight.

Examples

Encountering sexual child abuse as a caregiver:

Recognizing abuse: Annette was eight when her stepfather started coming into her room at night. He would touch her inappropriately under the covers. Annette was told not to tell her mother because her mother would say it was her fault. Annette felt ugly and sad. Annette told her grandmother what had been happening at night. Annette was worried that her stepfather would touch her little sister. Taking action: Annette’s grandmother believed her. She also told Annette that what her stepfather did was not her fault. Her grandmother immediately contacted child protective services and reported what Annette had told her. Annette and her little sister were taken the next day by a social worker to their aunt’s house. Helping a child heal: The social worker helped Annette get into therapy to help her with the feelings she was having about being sexually abused. Over time therapy helped her deal with her feeling and heal from the abuse she experienced. Annette now knows it was not her fault.

Encountering child sexual abuse as a teacher:

Recognizing abuse: Devon began showing sexual behaviors that were not normal for a child in third grade. During recess, he had been caught repeatedly humping other children with his clothes on. His teacher called his home to try to discuss this behavior with his parents, but his parent’s would not return her calls. Devon pulled down his pants down once in class. When he got in trouble, he would cry and suck his thumb. Taking action: Devon’s teacher knew that this behavior was not normal for a child in third grade. She talked to the principal and together they decided to call child protective services. CPS responded and brought Devon in for an assessment. It revealed that Devon had been sexually abused by his uncle. Child protective services intervened and the abuse stopped. A safety plan was implemented and counseling services were offered to the family. Helping a child heal: Devon started seeing the school counselor once a week and was supervised more closely during play with other children. Devon’s teacher provided further support to Devon by making sure that she pointed out the things that Devon did well, like science and reading, and encouraged him in areas that were harder.

For more resources click here.

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