Road to Recovery

Forty-two million Americans have suffered from child sexual abuse. Three million of those Americans are still children. When children are sexually abused, they become three times more likely to develop depression, thirteen times more likely to abuse alcohol, and twenty-six times more likely to abuse drugs. With all of these scary statistics, how are victims expected to recover? Believe it or not, victims of child sexual abuse can fully recover and lead normal, healthy lives.

One of the most common forms of recovery is talk therapy. The victims will talk one on one with their therapists. This method of healing, like any, can take years or decades to help the victims fully recover. This is the path that the writer of my second book, When the Piano Stops, took. Catherine McCall was in therapy for over 30 years, from the time she found out she was a victim of child sexual abuse, to the time she decided, as a survivor, that she was ready to forgive and move on with her life.

There are three main phases to therapy.

Early phases of therapy: The therapist and the victim work to build a relationship and gain trust. The therapist will be helping the victim get through telling stories of abuse, though these memories may be jumbled and confusing.

Middle phases of therapy: This step is where the victim must begin reprocessing the trauma, in three steps.

1. The victims must acknowledge that the childhood abuse has had an impact on their (adult) lives.
2. Many times the feelings of the abuse have been repressed until now. The victims must experience then release some of the feelings associated with the trauma.
3. The victims must explore their feelings towards their abusers and the parents or caretakers who did not protect them.
4. The victims must reassess the abuse, asking and trying to answer questions such as “Why did the abuse happen?” and “Who was responsible for these traumatic events?”

These steps must be repeated over and over until the victims confront and process the abuse. The survivors are then able to move past the time of abuse and let the abused child integrate into the older or adult self. Coping strategies, education, and cognitive reconstruction are then experienced and learned. The older or adult survivor can then place a clear line between past and present, which gives them a feeling of control over their own lives.

Termination phase: This phase empowers the survivors to acknowledge that they are no longer victim,s but survivors. They must learn to make decisions and choices without their therapists. This forces the survivors to create other support networks such as friends, family, or support groups.

If you or someone you know has been abused, contact either a local safeplace or national hotline, where you will receive help.

Alternatives to Violence on the Palouse-- 883-HELP (4357)

National Sexual Assault Hotline (RAINN)-- 1.800.656.HOPE

~Mady