![]() This type of sexual abuse consists of oral or written words expressed towards a victim that are sexual in nature. Though it doesn’t involve physical acts, verbal sexual abuse is still real abuse. There are actually other forms of sexual abuse, many of which don’t require physical contact at all, let alone being in the same room. While it’s fair to assume that sexual abuse requires engaging in physical sex acts, that is only one type of sexual abuse. This fusion of shame, secrecy, and pleasure has the potential to predispose you to sexual aversion, sexual anorexia, dysfunction, or compulsion, thereby deterring you from developing healthy sexual scripts in adulthood. They may also experience an overall distrust of their bodily reactions (such as arousal) or physical dissociation (Hunter, 1990, & Long, Burnett, Thomas, 2006). Children who have experienced these positive and pleasurable feelings often report feelings of shame and responsibility tied to their abuse and sexuality. When attempting to reconcile your abuse, a particularly confusing component for survivors of CSA is the experience of pleasurable physiological responses to your abuse, in conjunction with your emotional and psychological distress. It is not difficult to imagine why those whose sexuality has been impacted are more vulnerable to struggles with intimate relationships and sexuality. It can also draw early connections in the neural networks of the child’s brain that associate sex with power, fear, shame, confusion, secrecy and/or pain. When a child suffers sexual abuse, sexual arousal becomes activated prematurely and can largely impact the survivor’s sense of autonomy over their body and sexual sense of self (Roller, Martsolf, Draucker, Ross, 2009). The sexual functioning and sexual identity in adolescence and adulthood is a particularly vulnerable factor in childhood sexual abuse survivors. ![]() Through this awareness and through practicing specific tools and strategies, survivors of child sexual abuse can decrease post-traumatic symptoms and increase feelings of well-being.“When a child suffers sexual abuse, sexual arousal becomes activated prematurely and can largely impact the survivor’s sense of autonomy over their body and sexual sense of self.” - The Sexuality of Childhood Sexual Abuse Survivors And while the research is sobering, there’s good news, too: Because of the brain’s ability to adapt (referred to as neuroplasticity), trauma survivors can increase their awareness of how the abuse has impacted their brain and body. Trauma researchers are learning more about the effects that trauma has on the brain and body, and it’s clear that these effects can be wide-ranging and disruptive to daily routines years or even decades after the abuse has stopped. Such feelings are natural, valid, and among the very real effects of your trauma. At Saprea, we understand why survivors experience these fears and frustrations what you experienced as a child was likely confusing, frightening, and may have even been done to you by someone you trusted or loved. ![]() ![]() Survivors have shared everything from wondering why they can’t just “get over” what happened many years ago, to feeling like until they find some relief, there is no clear path forward. As a survivor of child sexual abuse, you may have a range of painful emotions.
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