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Sharing – Sexual violence within families: – It’s not a private matter
There isn’t a week that goes by that I don’t read a story in the news, or on social media that follows a similar path.
Child abused by a family member
The child tells someone in the family
The child isn’t believed or is accused of trying to embarrass the family.
Or, the child tells someone outside of the family
The child isn’t believed, or the person doesn’t want to make trouble for the parents. -
Sharing – 11 Factors That Increase the Risk of Child Sexual Abuse
For example, if we know that kids who don’t understand boundaries, are lonely, live in stressful family situations, and do not have open communication with other people in their lives, are more likely to be sexually abused, what does that mean when a teen comes out and is not accepted by their family? Or when a blended family becomes dysfunctional, or a kid with disabilities is not taught boundaries but kept hidden away from others?
You have kids who are lonely, who don’t feel safe and loved, who don’t understand boundaries, etc.
If a kid who’s lonely and lacking in self esteem is at risk. And a kid who identifies as LGBTQ+ is at risk, can we stop for a minute and consider that it’s not being LGBTQ+ that is a risk factor, it’s how much more likely that kid is to be lonely and lacking in self-esteem?
And thus, the cycle continues. When it shouldn’t. We know what it is about disabled kids, kids from blended families, or LGBTQ+ kids that make them more prone to abuse, mental health issues, and suicide. It’s not their reality, it’s the responses to their reality that create the risk factors. The things that make them more likely to be loners, disconnected from family support, lacking safe adults to communicate with, etc.
So maybe we should focus on being more supportive of all kids?
And, since we’re on the topic and it is June. Happy Pride!
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Sharing – The 18 Best Books About Anxiety for Kids and Parents
here’s a pretty good selection, take a look if you think it might help. I definitely agree that, especially with younger children, they won’t have the words to talk about feeling anxiety, or to understand what is normal nervousness versus life-altering levels of anxiety. As a parent, it can be difficult to know. Maybe, one of these books might help.
What books have you read about anxiety that you would recommend?
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Sharing – How I Talked to My Teen About Suicide-And How You Can Do It Better
When we talk about sitting with someone in their pain, we have to do the hard thing, we have to acknowledge that their pain is real, and might very well be life-threatening. We don’t want to think that way, but I guarantee you, someone suffering enough to consider suicide, knows for sure that they are absolutely dealing with a life-threatening disease.
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Sharing – How to Talk to Kids About Sexual Abuse
So yes, some of these conversations will be difficult, but believe me, the conversation with your adult kids about the abuse they suffered as children without you knowing about it, will be a lot harder. I’ve had that conversation with my parents in my 20’s. I’m sure they wished they didn’t have to have that.
