Abuse can take the form of emotional, physical, or sexual abuse. There are many different ways that people define words. When working with clients, I have often found that there is not enough clarity on when it comes to sexual abuse.
Definition
Here is a definition that might help to understand and clarify experiences: Sexual abuse is taking advantage of a child or adolescent through any act designed to sexually stimulate another person or to use it to sexually stimulate another person.
Definitions depend on the person using them. If you ask a legal person, such as judges and lawyers, they use definitions that speak of “title.” Therapists, psychologists, psychologists, and others who work in the mental health community will talk about “betrayal” and “boundary violation.”
What can happen?
The following is by no means a complete list of what sexual abuse can be, but it does draw a picture nonetheless:
- Talking about sex that makes the child or adolescent nervous
- Talking to the child or adolescent about their body or other personal things in a way that makes them feel uncomfortable.
- Touching a child or adolescent in a way that makes them uncomfortable
- Finding ways to see the child or adolescent naked or partially naked, for example, entering their room or bathroom.
- Someone exposing themselves to a child or adolescent
- Having a child or adolescent look at sexual images or have them pose for such images
- Have a child or adolescent touch the other person’s private parts (vagina, breasts, penis, butt)
- Touching the private parts of a child or adolescent (vagina, breasts, penis, butt) for stimulation or sexual pleasure
- Penetrating the vagina or anus of the child or adolescent with fingers, penis, or other objects
Members of the same family
Incest is sexual abuse that occurs between members of the same family, for example, a mother, father, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, grandmother, grandfather, or cousin. It can also be someone who has that role of caregiver in your family, for example, a stepfather, a foster parent, a guardian, a father-in-law, mom’s boyfriend, dad’s girlfriend, basically anyone who becomes a member. of the family through marriage, law or circumstances.
It is important to note that the law defines incest as sexual intercourse between people who are related by blood.
The bottom line, whatever the definition, is that abuse is against the law and creates a lot of pain for the whole family and must be dealt with.