March 2012 Challenge : Embrace These Truths

Harsh as they may be, reports and statistics are an everyday part of life. Instead of shunning them and remaining in the dark, confront them, become aware, and become part of the ongoing battle to find a solution. Child Sexual Abuse is Real but it is not incurable.

Random Facts:

New reports state that 1 in 3 girls, not 1 in 4, are the victims of child sexual abuse.

In as many as 93 percent of child sexual cases, the child knows the person that commits the abuse.

In relation to knowing the perpetrator, if familial ties exist, the abuse is known as incest.

Many sexually abused children exhibit physical, behavioral and emotional symptoms.

Children who are abused or neglected are more likely to become criminal offenders as adults.

Disclosure and response are key elements in a child's well being and treatment after the abuse.

Talking with your children, making them aware of appropriate sexual behavior is key in prevention.

Repressed memory is a coping mechanism in adults used to deal, or not deal with the nightmares of being sexually abused as a child.

Perpetrators report that they look for passive, quiet, troubled, lonely children from single parent or broken homes.

Grooming is when a perpetrator establishes a trusting relationship with the victim and/or the victim’s family in order to gain access to the child.

*The list is longer than both my arms outstretched. The point is this, when we turn blind eye and deaf ear to the facts, we dismiss the truths. When we dismiss the truths, we become desensitized to the rest of the world who have acknowledged these statistics. And then one day, you wake up, see and understand the facts, but by then, it's usually too late. Become aware today and let those around you know that this is important to you. Share this knowledge with them. 

Blessings. 

~K. Taylor