In recent years considerable attention has been paid to the subject of abuse in childhood. Less attention has been paid to what happens to the vast number of women and men who have reached adulthood with this experience haunting them. Moira Walker overviews the experience and its implications, dealing with physical, sexual and psychological abuse. An essential part of the content is based on interviews with survivors of child abuse, voicing their views on the effects of the experience and the effectiveness of the help offered. At the same time Surviving Secrets seeks to understand the context in which abuse takes place, the society which itself contains and sustains abuse at various levels. It is a moving account of the experience and effects of childhood abuse and a handbook for those in the caring professions, in voluntary organizations and elsewhere who are helping survivors of abuse.

Tom was the only adult who gave me the attention and affection that I so badly needed. I loved his caresses and the times he comforted me. I loved talking to him because he was the only adult who listened and understood. - Neil's Story From Victim to Offender shows how victims of child sexual abuse become juvenile and adult offenders. The stories told by these offenders reveal the vulnerability of boys to paedophiles and pederasts who provide the male attention lacking in some children's home lives. They show how early sexualisation damages children's sexual development, their relationships and their adult lives. The story of a female offender reveals that this problem is not confined to boys. These stories highlight the inadequacy of current child protection programs for the protection of boys. The editor's introduction and the chapter from a psychologist who specialises in the treatment of offenders emphasise the need to improve child protection and treatment programs for offenders.From Victim to Offender offers unique insights into the experiences of victims and offenders of sexual abuse, and is essential reading for professionals who are concerned about child protection and those responsible for the rehabilitation of offenders.

The Health and Human Services poverty line for a three-person family in America is $11,8oo in annual income. One in every five American children is growing up in poverty. What does child poverty mean for the economic and societal future of our country? The Children's Defense Fund, widely considered the most powerful force for children in America, has assembled expert and ground-breaking information on how poverty affects health, childhood deaths, low birth weight, and injury; on the insidious connections between low family income and learning disabilities; on links between poverty, abuse, and neglect and self-esteem; and much more. "Wasting America's Future" is the crucial citizen's handbook as we continue the national debate on welfare reform.

'A brave and necessary book' GUARDIAN 'Shocking, gripping and sobering' SUNDAY TELEGRAPH No other society sends its young boys and girls away to school to prepare them for a role in the ruling class. Beating, bullying, fagging, cold baths, vile food and paedophile teachers are just some of the features of this elite education, and, while some children loved boarding school, others now admit to suffering life-altering psychological damage. Stiff Upper Lip exposes the hypocrisy, cronyism and conspiracy that are key to understanding the scandals over abuse and neglect in institutions all over the world. Award-winning investigative journalist Alex Renton went to three traditional boarding schools. Drawing on those experiences, and the vivid testimony of hundreds of former pupils, he has put together a compelling history, important to anyone wondering what shaped the people who run Britain in the twenty-first century.

A century's worth of information on the physical, social, and mental effects of child abuse and neglect is gathered together in this extraordinary study. John Money adopts the historical figure of Kaspar Hauser as the paradigm case of the abusive neglect and deprivation that have typified reports of child abuse for more than a century. Hauser was a physically stunted adult with the mind of a child, who was abandoned at the city gate of Nuremburg in 1828, after seventeen years of neglect and isolation in a dungeon. The notoriety of his case gave the impetus to decades of medical investigation and many learned arguments regarding the significance of nature versus nurture. Money summarizes the various theories that have been advanced since Hauser's time by pediatricians, psychologists, and psychiatrists. He underscores recent studies showing that deprivation drastically impairs the normal functioning of the growth hormone, thus causing physical dwarfism, mental retardation, and defective social development. He shows how children from abusive environments can be effectively treated by a move to a new home and affectionate stimulation of the skin senses. Data collected on more than thirty modern cases of the Kaspar Hauser syndrome are presented to support Money's arguments. This groundbreaking work concludes with a review by Joshua Kendall of the Kaspar Hauser figure in nineteenth and twentieth century poetry, prose, and drama. We see how various artists have used the image of Kaspar Hauser as a potent and haunting symbol of our troubled modern society.

Deciding how best to help an abused or neglected child can be an agonizing process for protective service workers. Should caseworkers recommend that the child be removed from the home temporarily and placed in foster care? Should the child be allowed to remain at home with support services to bolster the parents' ability to provide a safe and nurturing environment? Should the child be separated permanently from parents and be eligible for adoption? This book provides practical guidelines for workers who must make decisions about these and other issues. The authors, a psychoanalyst, a social worker, and a research scientist, discuss thirty-five cases of child abuse and neglect that have come to the attention of the courts and caseworkers in Connecticut but that are typical of cases throughout the United States. The children represent a range of ages and ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds. The cases illustrate a variety of placement issues including sexual abuse, abandonment, adoption, and visitation conflicts. In each case, the authors attempt to demonstrate that the least harmful decision-making is based on sound principles of child development: the child's need for continuity of affectionate relationships and his or her need to feel wanted by at least one responsible adult. The book, illustrating useful ways of resolving child-placement conflicts, will be an essential guide and resource for all who work in this complex field.

This collection of prose and therapeutic insights creates a powerful commentary on incest, rape, abuse, and the recovery process.
Women and men share their personal experiences of childhood abuse and walk with the reader along the path toward wellness. They reflect each stage of healing with a clarity that, while often painful, is also hopeful.
Addressing various aspects of abuse, including ritualistic abuse, multiple personality disorder, and partnering as well as providing a therapist's insights on the stages of healing, "Triumph Over Darkness" helps readers to understand recovery as a predictable process and see that healing is possible.

Although some information on the physical abuse of children has been available for some time, the topic of sexual abuse has been neglected until very recently. This selective guide is the first North American resource to gather together diverse information on sexual abuse, including findings about incest, non-family abuse, the offender, legal aspects of sexual offences, and the treatment of the abused. Also included are a recommended basic library on the subject and a list of available films. Designed for educators and students alike in faculties of education, medicine, nursing, and social work, it will also be most useful for in-service training courses in health and welfare institutions and community college courses for para-professionals. Sexual Abuse of Children was selected as an Outstanding Academic Book for 1982-83 by Choice, the journal of the Association of College of Research Libraries, American Library Association.

Valuable resource for professionals in fields of psychiatry, psychology, mentatal health, social work and teaching, also for concerned parents. Provides guidelines for treating the child and family and systems for prevention. Techniques of different therapies are discussed as well as procedures for reporting, investigating, and interviewing the child.

Two-time Olympic gold medalist Kayla Harrison has always been a fighter--yet as a young teen, no one knew she was also a victim. Combining Kayla's powerful story of sexual abuse by her judo coach with science-based information from two renowned therapists, this unique book provides critical guidance for parents and professionals. Learn how to spot the signs that a child or teen is being groomed, why kids stay silent about their trauma, how they struggle with self-blame and the brutal betrayal of a trusted authority figure, and exactly what kind of help they need to recover. No one is more qualified than Kayla and her expert coauthors to explain the impact of child sexual abuse--and what you can do to keep kids safe.

Placing the experiences of men at the heart of this book, Sarah Van Gogh outlines an integrative approach to effective therapeutic treatment of male sexual abuse. In a culture where to be male is often to be expected to embody strength, power and being in control, male victims of sexual abuse can be particularly challenging to help. This book outlines seven composite detailed case studies representing men from a wide range of backgrounds and demographics. It lays out how the author's pioneering model of an integrative approach which includes psychodynamic, humanistic, relational, cognitive/behavioural, body-based and arts-based approaches can offer an effective model for working with this client group. This key text provides a valuable resource for all those working with male survivors of sexual abuse.

The Sunday Times and Irish Times bestseller, as featured in the Sunday Independent 'You're all fallen women. You've sowed the seed of Satan. You are nothing.' Mary Creighton was just 15 when she found herself pregnant out of wedlock, in 1960s Ireland. She dreamed of a happy life with her child, but that was shattered when she was sent away to Castlepollard - a home for mothers and their unborn babies. Stripped of their clothes and forced into gruelling work whilst pregnant, those who survived childbirth were made to force-feed their children for adoption into wealthy families. Babies were ripped out of their mother's hands, but Mary refused to let that happen to her. She managed to escape only to later lose her beautiful daughter to social services and the Sacred Heart nuns, who always managed to catch up with her. After spending time in an infamous Magdalene Laundry, and having another two children snatched away, Mary sought to find her lost children, and demand answers for the atrocities committed supposedly in God's name. This is a haunting account of a mother's worst nightmare, as Mary continues to fight for justice for the mothers who suffered and the babies of Castlepollard: hundreds of which died and are still buried in the grounds today.

Children need to be able to disclose their experiences of sexual abuse in order to stop the abuse and get help. Practical and accessible, this book offers guidance on how professionals can identify potential abuse cases and create safe opportunities for children to talk about sexual abuse. The book explores challenges in facilitating and responding to disclosures of abuse, such as: how to recognise the signs, ask the right questions and react to a disclosure. It also draws on research carried out with children who have experienced sexual abuse, to convey how experiences of disclosure feel to those making them and what informs a decision to tell or not tell. Helping Children to Tell About Sexual Abuse will be suitable for any professional working with a child or young person, including social workers, psychologists, child/family therapists, health care workers, school nurses, school counsellors, health visitors, police and youth workers.

Sharon Shoesmith was Director of Children's Services for Haringey in 2007 at the time of the death of Peter Connelly, also known as 'Baby P'. In Learning from Baby P, she carries out a dispassionate analysis of the events which followed Peter Connelly's death, documenting the responses of the media, politicians and the public. She explores the psychological and emotional responses we share when faced with such horrifying cases of familial child homicide, and how a climate of fear and blame which follows such tragedies can lead to negative consequences for other children at risk of harm, and for the social workers striving to protect them. Learning from Baby P is a thought-provoking book which aims to deepen understanding and shed light on the difficult relationship between politics, the media and child protection.

Practical support for how to overcome childhood trauma Many psychological and emotional problems faced by adults have their roots in childhood trauma, and this invaluable self-help guide offers advice and techniques based on cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) for anyone who has experienced trauma as a child, be it emotional, physical or sexual. Written by an experienced practitioner, this book is for anyone who has been hurt or neglected as a child. If you are struggling with difficulties in relationships, with self-confidence or mood, this book will help you address these common experiences as an immediate coping strategy or as a preliminary to fuller therapy. The updated second edition will help you: - Understand the psychological impact of childhood trauma - Know where to turn for further help and resources - Learn useful CBT strategies to start on the road to recovery and resilience

Who Is Bob_34? sheds light on the clandestine world of online child pornography and pedophilia. What exactly do we know about these crimes? Who produces child cyberpornography? Who distributes it? Who consumes it? And is there a link between viewing and abuse? By infiltrating child-porn user groups and comparing their findings to scholarship on the topic, Francis Fortin and Patrice Corriveau address these questions and more, opening a window on a world that is much more complex than media accounts and commissioned reports suggest.

A heartbreaking, powerful true story from Britain's most-loved foster carer, perfect for fans of Cathy Glass and Casey Watson. When a terrified young girl is discovered hiding in the back of a lorry, she is quickly taken into the care of social services. Arriving on the doorstep of foster carer Maggie Hartley, she is painfully thin, bruised and unable to speak a word of English. What atrocities has she escaped to bring her here? Woken each night by the screams of Halima's nightmares, Maggie is desperate to reach this damaged young girl. But without a shared language, she fears that she may never uncover the truth behind her terror. Can Maggie help Halima recover from the horrors she has endured, and help her build a new life for herself? Or will Halima forever be haunted by the ghosts of her past?

Offering a systematic approach to evidence-based assessment and planning for children living with trauma and family violence, this practical book shows how to assess and analyse the needs of the child, make specialist assessments where there are continuing safeguarding concerns (using the Assessment Framework) and plan effective child-centred and outcome-focused interventions. The authors analyse the impact of exposure to a climate of trauma and family violence on a child's bioneurological development and on their capacity to form attachments and to develop and reflect on relationships through childhood and adolescence into adulthood. They bring together the assessment of children in need with the evaluation of significant harm and risk, and potential for rehabilitation, and also explore the application of evidence-based approaches to intervention. This book is an essential tool for all front-line practitioners working with child protection, including social workers, child and adolescent mental health practitioners, police officers, probation workers and domestic violence organizations. It is also suitable for undergraduate, postgraduate and post-qualifying students.

The shocking story of how exceptionally violent abuse turned one girl to desperate self-harm before turning her life around. Growing up, Sophie carried a terrible secret. She was her father's slave, in the most horrific ways imaginable. At just a few months old she was adopted by a couple that seemed comfortably well off and perfectly respectable to the outside world. But behind closed doors, Sophie's childhood was a living hell. Her father spent the next decade grooming her for abuse and when Sophie's mother left for good, that very night, he told Sophie that from now on she would sleep in his bed. Unable to cope, Sophie spiralled into suicidal misery. She began to self-harm to try and escape the agony. But one day she went too far and at 16, ended up in a psychiatric unit. It was here that she finally confronted the horrors of home and began the painful journey of rebuilding her life. A phenomenally courageous woman, Sophie now works for the Samaritans and helps other young people in need. Harrowing yet compelling, this is a searing and truly inspirational account of overcoming the worst abuse and self-harm.

Michele's childhood was a nightmare. Her mother was a gifted psychic but highly unstable, unable to control the dark forces her powers unleashed or to look after Michele. When she was six her beloved father died and the last shreds of normality were gone forever. From then on Michele was at the mercy of sexual predators and her mother's violent lovers. Evil surrounded her... But Michele wasn't alone. Her twin sister Lucy was constantly at her side, comforting her, chasing away the demons and even saving her life on several occasions. Lucy had died when the twin girls were babies. But her spirit stayed behind to watch over her little sister. Time and again, when Michele reached her darkest hour, Lucy reached out with a deep sense of love and gently guided her to safety. This is the heartbreaking, but ultimately inspirational story of a little girl, who was beaten, raped, neglected and despised, but rescued from despair by an angel.