Long-Term Effects of Child Molestation Essay Example

Child molestation is a type of child abuse where an older adolescent or an adult uses a minor for sexual stimulation. Many forms of child abuse exist. They include adults' sexual activities with a minor, using children to produce pornographic content and indecent exposure. Being a victim of child molestation has been a painful experience for me. Apart from the physical pain encountered during molestation, the act has had a devastating long-term impact on my adult life. I attribute my childhood molestation to my current depressive symptoms, anxiety, stress, post-traumatic stress disorder, and sleep disturbances.

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One of the consequences of child molestation is depression. According to Maniglio (2010), child sexual abuse is a significant risk factor for depression. The magnitude of the association between molestation and depression ranges from smalltomedium. It has also been established that in individuals with a history of sexual abuse, the likelihood of developing depressive symptoms may be exacerbated by a traumatic experience in child abuse survivors (Maniglio, 2010). Additionally, research has shown that 30-40% of people with a history of sexual abuse in their childhood experience depression during their lifetime while their counterparts with no history of child molestation have lower prevalence at 10-20% (Molnar, Buka, & Kessler, 2001). Moreover, people with a history of childhood sexual abuse have been reported to have an early onset of depression and a higher likelihood of the condition being chronic (Teicher, Samson, Polcari, & Andersen, 2009).

Ever since I experienced molestation, I have become overly anxious, socially and sexually - every time I remember the act, my fear and anxiety increase to almost unmanageable levels. Past research studies have also established a link between childhood sexual abuse and anxiety in adulthood. For instance, according to Hall and Hall (2011), women who have familial childhood sexual molestation experience higher current levels of anxiety when they think about the abuse. It has also been reported that the distress levels are high in individuals who had sexual abuse at a young age, among those with a high frequency of sexual abuse encounters, and those with more extensive sexual abuse, a higher number of sexual abuses.

I have also established that my childhood sexual molestation is linked to my recurring stress and anxiety, even though the act occurred a long time ago. According to Hall and Hall (2011), childhood sexual abuse can be a frightening experience and could lead to stress long after the act. The stress levels linked to childhood sexual molestation is comparable to symptoms from war-related trauma and has also been established to lead to posttraumatic stress symptoms that are similar to those reported by Vietnam veterans (Hall & Hall, 2011).

Another long-term consequence of childhood abuse is post-traumatic stress disorder. This type of disorder is a response that takes place when an individual is exposed to extreme traumatic events. Its symptoms include re-experience, avoidance, and elevated arousal. It has been reported that childhood physical and sexual abuse increases susceptibility to posttraumatic stress disorder in adulthood. For instance, according to Sanchez et al. (2017), women who had sexual abuse encounters in their childhood have 5.33 higher fold of posttraumatic stress disorder compared to women with no childhood abuse. Additionally, women who experienced both physical and sexual abuse in childhood have been found to have 8.03 higher fold of developing posttraumatic disorders. Moreover, women have been found to be at a higher likelihood of being victims of childhood molestation worldwide (20% vs 8%) and hence have a higher risk of posttraumatic stress disorder (Sanchez et al., 2017).

Childhood molestation has also been reported to lead to impaired self-esteem. It has been found that childhood sexual independently decreases victims' self-esteem. For instance, in a study conducted by Kim, Park, and Park (2017) to examine the link between sexual abuse and self-esteem among other factors, it was established that molestation leads to decreased self-esteem. Additionally, it was found out that impaired self-esteem mediated the relationship between sexual victimization and depression. A mechanism that can be used to explain impaired self-esteem following childhood molestation is that the distress linked to sexual abuse damage's the victims' self-concept. Damage to self-concept leads to increases negative self-evaluations and negative core beliefs leading to impaired self-efficacy and emergence of inferiority complex.

Lastly, child molestation has also been linked to sleep disturbances or sleep disorders in adulthood (Greenfield, Lee, Friedman, & Springer, 2011). Poor sleep quality in victims of child molestation has been linked to stress. Specifically, compared to individuals who do not have a history of child sexual abuse, those who were abused while young have been found to have more than 200% higher clinically relevant levels of sleep pathology.

Conclusion

In conclusion, child molestation has adverse impacts on the victims. Individuals with a history of child molestation have been found to experience health problems in adulthood. Some of these problems include current depressive symptoms, anxiety, stress, post-traumatic stress disorder, and sleep disturbances. Consequently, victims of childhood abuse should immediately receive counselling support to minimize the occurrence of these devastating conditions.

References

Greenfield, E. A., Lee, C., Friedman, E. L., & Springer, K. W. (2011). Childhood abuse as a risk factor for sleep problems in adulthood: evidence from a u. S. National study. Annals of Behavioral Medicine: A Publication of the Society of Behavioral Medicine, 42(2), 245-256. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12160-011-9285-x

Kim, B.-N., Park, S., & Park, M.-H. (2017). The relationship of sexual abuse with self-esteem, depression, and problematic internet use in Korean adolescents. Psychiatry Investigation, 14(3), 372-375. https://doi.org/10.4306/pi.2017.14.3.372

Maniglio, R. (2010). Child sexual abuse in the etiology of depression: A systematic review of reviews. Depression and Anxiety, 27(7), 631-642. https://doi.org/10.1002/da.20687

Molnar, B. E., Buka, S. L., & Kessler, R. C. (2001). Child sexual abuse and subsequent psychopathology: results from the National Comorbidity Survey. American Journal of Public Health, 91(5), 753-760.

Sanchez, S. E., Pineda, O., Chaves, D. Z., Zhong, Q.-Y., Gelaye, B., Simon, G. E., ... Williams, M. A. (2017). Childhood physical and sexual abuse experiences associated with post-traumatic stress disorder among pregnant women. Annals of Epidemiology, 27(11), 716-723.e1. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.annepidem.2017.09.012

Teicher, M. H., Samson, J. A., Polcari, A., & Andersen, S. L. (2009). Length of time between onset of childhood sexual abuse and emergence of depression in a young adult sample. The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 70(5), 684-691.