Daddy Please Don't Hurt Me
..., post-traumatic stress disorder, and various behavioral problems. Surveys of adults who are hospitalized in psychiatric hospitals report overwhelmingly 74% have a history of some abuse as a child (Fritz). It is a proven fact that adults who were abused as children compared to those who were not are three times as likely to have an anxiety disorder, four times as likely to have antisocial personality disorder, and ten times as likely to have post traumatic stress disorder. Clearly substance abuse is intertwined in with all of these negative behaviors. Another interesting finding is that 75% of women in some kind of psychological treatment for substance abuse had reportedly been sexually abused as a child (Fritz). Why would a parent commit such a horrendous crime against their own children? Normally it is result of the parents themselves experiences some type of trauma or physical abuse. Do these parents not realize the damage they are causing their children, or are they just too self absorbed too notice or care? Researcher Willie Langleland from the Amsterdam Institute for Addiction Research conducted a study in which they gathered information concerning lifetime physical and sexual assaults. In their studies they noted the following: “Among men, being physically abused was significantly associated with witnessing violence, parental alcohol problems and adult sexual assault. Reported sexual abuse in men was significantly associated with physical abuse, maternal dysfunction and being a victim of adult sexual assault. Among women, being physically abuse in childhood was significantly associated with witnessing parental violence, while having experienced child sexual abuse was significantly associated with adult sexual assault.” (Fritz) It is obvious that the lasting effects of child abuse can have huge negative implications for not only the individual, but for society as a whole. To put this in a broader perspective, an abused, psychologically damaged child will eventually grow up and become an adult. As an adult they are more likely to abuse drugs and alcohol. Women especially can become caught up in a mindset of valuing themselves as an unlovable sex object not worthy of any affection leading to prostitution or putting themselves into relationships with men that do not go anywhere. Dr. Richard Fritsch and Dr. Rajeeve Warrier found that the result of their client’s, Penelope Hollander, sexual abuse generated itself in a “powerful erotic striving and at the same time ‘crippled’ her relationships with men” (Fritsch and Warrier). Men who were abused greatly as children are more prone to committing serious crimes, especially sexual crimes. Dr. Gregory Fritz conducted a study that shows when a child is being abused they can often act out in the classroom or playground. There are several signs of abuse that children often try to explain away or overlook. Some of the signs of abuse can include unexplained burns, cuts, bruises, or welts in the shape of an object, eating disorders, inappropriate interest in or knowledge of sexual acts, being dirty or not bathed. Sometimes there are no obvious physical signs of sexual abuse, and a physician must examine the child to confirm the abuse. Many people cannot even begin to understand how one could bring harm to an innocent child. Not all abuse is deliberate or intended. Several factors in a person's life may combine to move them toward abusing a child. The stress of having children in the family, when one did not have children before, having to deal with a handicapped child, substance abuse, marriage problems, unemployment, or as stated before, the abuser is now abusing due to their own childhood trauma. “No one has been able to predict which of these factors will cause someone to abuse a child. A significant factor is that abu...