Over many years of working with survivors of childhood abuse, in all of its many permutations and combinations, I’ve come to believe that there is a constellation of symptoms or behaviors in adults which suggest they might have been abused as children. While these are more applicable to sexual abuse, some apply to physical abuse victims and a few apply to the other types of abuse we put children through. Disclosure: the most exhaustive list...

A number of people have contacted me  over the past few months, wanting to talk about their victimization. These emails describe a wide range of feelings, reactions and heartbreak. For adults who were abused as children, the emotional outcome is as varied as people are. There are no hard and fast outcomes – there is only your outcome and it’s as perfect as perfect can be. It is always normal.  And it is always healthy. So...

Child sexual abuse is the last and most disgusting topic in this series.  As a survivor of this tragedy, I thought I had heard and read it all and that I had recovered.  But in collecting and verifying statistics and information, I am sickened anew.  Children are constantly warned to be aware of stranger danger but sadly, their greatest risk is in their homes and their day to day lives.  Children continue to be raped and violated by parents,...