Child abusers exist across races and gender. Understanding what is behind sexual abuse can help us more effectively prevent sexual violence. As well as just give victims power and understand what their abuser was doing.
CSA Basics
Symptom Explainer: Intrusive Thoughts
Intrusive thoughts are unwanted, cognitively and emotionally disruptive thoughts. These thoughts are characteristic of anxiety disorders and obsessive-compulsive class disorders. They are also found in mood, eating, trauma & addiction disorders. Intrusive thoughts are usually thoughts about actions, scenarios or fears the person finds upsetting and often taboo in their culture. Common topics include inappropriate … Continue reading Symptom Explainer: Intrusive Thoughts
Informational Article: Define Trauma
The essence of trauma is the responses to the event when our brain and body's window of tolerance is overwhelmed.
Symptom Explainer: Dissociation
Defining Dissociation General Dissociation: Dissociation refers to the natural mechanism our brain has to disconnect us from our surroundings and ourselves. This is sometimes as a benign reaction but severe dissociation is associated with trauma and other mental illnesses. Every Person has the capacity for dissociation and many experiences some degree of the skill like … Continue reading Symptom Explainer: Dissociation
The False Memory Myth & Memory Repression
A common question we've got is people asking if their memories are "real" if they "made it up" and similar concerns. This is distressing to us because it comes from a place of not only misinformation but the effects of a deep culture of victim-blaming, the denial of sexual abuse and dates back to truly … Continue reading The False Memory Myth & Memory Repression
Advice Post: How To Start Talking About Our Abuse Stories
Talking About Our Abuse Stories Putting Words to The Abuse: Drawing can be a good first step to allowing thoughts to be externalized. Music and dancing even can be a way to communicate the way the body and subconscious carry trauma in a way that words don’t always understand. Journaling is often a good way … Continue reading Advice Post: How To Start Talking About Our Abuse Stories
Diagnosis Primer: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Post Traumatic Disorder (PTSD) is a relatively common disorder in those who have experienced trauma. It includes much of the cultural assumptions of what trauma causes like flashbacks and reactions to reminders of the trauma. The depictions are often done with some real misinformation so hopefully, this will help flesh out how PTSD is understood … Continue reading Diagnosis Primer: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Informational Article: Signs of Sexual Abuse
Signs in Children: Anger and aggressivenessAny extreme changes of behaviour or moodsAn unhealthy attachment to a single personAnxiety and hypervigilanceAvoiding changing in front of people, dressing out for gym class, swimming or other activities where more than normal skin is exposedBeing overly compliant with requests, directions and physical contact. Or a “fawn” responseBleeding in the … Continue reading Informational Article: Signs of Sexual Abuse
Informational Article: Childhood Sexual Abuse Fact Sheet
Statistics On Victims: Gender/Sex of Victims: 1/5 or about 20% of female will experience sexual abuse before the age of 18 in the US. This does include non-contact abuse. (1)1/20 to 1/10 or 5 to 10% of males will be sexually abused before the age of 18 in the US. This does include non-contact abuse … Continue reading Informational Article: Childhood Sexual Abuse Fact Sheet
Symptom Explainers: Flashbacks
What are Flashbacks? Flashbacks are a psychological phenomena during which a person relives a past event or fragments of a past experience. They generally occur involuntarily, abruptly entering a person’s minds without the aid of premeditation or conscious attempts to recall the memory. They can be extremely intense. As flashbacks involve past events, they may … Continue reading Symptom Explainers: Flashbacks
Survivors Healing Survivors 