Teaching Children About Abuse

Teaching children about abuse is important because there are different types of child abuse and many people don't realize that. You may need to learn a thing or two about child abuse if you didn't realize there are several different kinds! Children tend to not say anything when they are being abused weather it is sexual, physical, emotional or even mental. If a child is being abused they need to tell some one right away. Talk to them and explain to them that is not their fault. I will list below some of the different types of abuse and how you and your child can handle the situation correctly if it should arise.

Teaching Children About Different Kinds of Abuse

• Physical abuse - You may see burns, cuts, scratches, bruises. Tell them if they talk about it they will not get hurt for telling. Physical abuse may make a child reluctant to tell though because the abuser may threaten more harm if the child tells anyone. The external scarring from this is bad but the internal scarring may never go away unless you talk to your kids as soon as you can about this.
• Mental abuse - This is where someone is telling a child mean and nasty things, and putting them down for everything they do. Whether it is about the child or someone else it is not good for them to hear these kinds of negative things. Other derogatory comments made towards a child such as insults pertaining to their appearance, their intelligence and their abilities all also comprise mental abuse, and may also be considered emotional abuse. The worst consequence of mental abuse is that the child begins to believe that the abuse is justified, that they deserve to be insulted and verbally mistreated. It is important when disciplining a child that your criticism is constructive, regardless of your adult role in their life.
• Emotional abuse - Similar to mental abuse, and in some cases abuse can be simultaneously mental and emotional. This kind of abuse involves manipulating a child's emotions for whatever reason. An example of manipulating a child's emotions, and one that may be considered abuse, is to get them excited about something they want, and then tell them they aren't going to get it. The child is made happy, and then their little dreams are crushed. It is one thing to tell a child that their not going to get something they want as a means of punishment, it is another to get them excited about something, to the point that they are expecting it, and then take it away.
• Sexual abuse - Sadly enough, most child sexual abuse comes from people close to them. It could be a friend, family member, or authority figure. Obviously, sexual abuse is anything that involves touching of private areas in a sexual nature. It is different than, for example, a mother bathing her young child. But sexual abuse also includes any unwanted physical contact of a sexual nature. So, a hug could be considered sexual abuse, depending on the nature of the hug. So as an adult, you must be careful not to misconstrue your physical contact with a child. If they misinterpret your body language, they may feel as if they have sexually abused, and the problem is, they don't understand it. So it is possible to inadvertently sexually abuse a child without even knowing it! For any children that may read this, understand that if an adult touches you in a way that makes you feel strange, immediately say NO! And if you still feel strange about it after wards, tell someone. You are not going to get in trouble. You have a right to not be touched by anyone except your parents, teachers, and nurses or doctors. Even then, if you feel strange or weird about the way they touched you, you should still tell someone.

All of these issues need to be talked about with your children as soon as you can possibly do so. It is your responsibility to make sure you teach your children about abuse. The most important thing to understand is that you need to communicate to your child that if something like this happens, it is not their fault, and you will take care of them should something happen.

Teaching your Children how to Cope with Abuse

In the tragic event that your child experiences abuse, you have to be very delicate with the situation. Depending on the severity and type of abuse, and depending upon the child's personality, they may be traumatized by the experience. You need to let them know that they are loved and that you will protect them, and you need to show them love, but you also need to understand that the trauma may cause them to put up walls, and you need to respect those walls. If you get frustrated because your child won't let you hug them after a trauma, it is only going to make the damage worse.

As a parent please teach to your child as early as possible about all the different forms of abuse there is. Explain to them that they can talk to you or someone they trust about it at any time they want. They are also aloud to ask you or another adult they trust any questions they may have regarding the issue. Please keep your kids safe and sound they are so precious and do not deserve to be harmed. There are hot lines, websites, and different facilities that deal with these kinds of situations. If you need to, you should use the resources you have to deal with the situation the best that you as an adult can for your child.