Abuse Articles

Listed by most recent articles first.

• Cyberbullying and Teen Suicide
  The headline took my breath away. In a town close to mine, a 15-year-old had committed suicide due to cyberbullying. Described as a charming and well-liked young girl, she nonetheless crumbled when targeted ...
• Signs of a Controlling Guy
  Letters like these come in to our "Ask the Therapist" column every week: "My boyfriend freaks out if I go out with my friends for an evening -- even though he hangs out with ...
• Why Women Stay with Controlling Men
  Why would a woman stay in a relationship with a guy who puts her down, hems her in, and perhaps even physically abuses her? Why would a woman hold down two jobs to keep the ...
• Women and Violence
  The impact of violence against women is too often masked by silence. Its continuation depends on silence. Distance keeps us safe and unless one personally experiences violence or knows someone who has, many of us ...
• My Adversity, My Son
  I watched "Hawthorne" on TNT tonight. One of the story lines was about a woman who came into the ER with a broken arm and during the examination she was discovered to have many bruises ...
• Conquering Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
  Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is one of the most difficult conditions for anyone to bear. Many who encounter life-threatening events or situations that threaten physical or emotional safety become burdened by a variety of intense ...
• How Do We Stop Bullying in Schools?
  The best and most obvious way to stop bullying in schools is for parents to change the way they parent their children at home. Of course, this is much easier said than done and ...
• Teens Who Self-Harm
  Sandy's mother, Lily, is beside herself. "I didn't notice anything was wrong all winter," she said. "Oh, she was quieter than usual and her grades weren't the best. But we moved last fall and I ...
• Coping with Flashbacks
  Flashbacks are memories of past traumas. They may take the form of pictures, sounds, smells, body sensations, feelings, or the lack of them (numbness). Many times there is no actual ...
• What is a Trigger?
  A trigger is something that sets off a memory tape or flashback transporting the person back to the event of her/his original trauma. Triggers are very personal; different things trigger different people. ...
• Neglect: The Quieter Child Abuse
  It's a silent problem. While newspapers and TV news shows regularly highlight stories of child physical and sexual abuse, the companion problem, child neglect, hardly gets a mention. Neglect, unless accompanied by pictures of squalor ...
• My Battle with Childhood Sexual Abuse
  My first memory of emotional abuse was when I was three years old. Mum left me with the next door neighbour who was the local flasher. He didn't think anything of showing himself to ...
• Coping with Acquaintance Rape
  Rape by an acquaintance is often even more traumatizing than rape by a stranger. First of all, it represents a violation of trust. Secondly, victims may not get the social support they need and deserve. While ...
• Five Steps for Dealing with Trauma
  Did you know that bad things that have happened to you in your life can cause or worsen psychiatric symptoms? More and more research confirms the strong connection between traumatic life events and psychiatric symptoms. ...
• What Causes Antisocial Personality Disorder?
  The cause of antisocial personality disorder, or ASP, is unknown. Like many mental health issues, evidence points to inherited traits. But dysfunctional family life also increases the likelihood of ASP. So although ASP may have ...
• PTSD and Relationships
  Trauma survivors with PTSD often experience problems in their intimate and family relationships or close friendships. PTSD involves symptoms that interfere with trust, emotional closeness, communication, responsible assertiveness, and effective problem solving: Loss of interest in ...
• A Parent’s Guide To Protecting Kids with Intellectual Disabilities from Sexual Abuse
  It’s a parent’s worst nightmare. Depending on the study, it is estimated that from 60 to 90 percent of women with an intellectual disability will be sexually exploited or abused in the course of their ...
• Types of Abuse
  Abuse refers to harmful or injurious treatment of another human being that may include physical, sexual, verbal, psychological/emotional, intellectual, or spiritual maltreatment. Abuse may coexist with neglect, which is defined as failure to meet a ...
• Writing about Trauma Can Produce Health Benefits
  It's well established that talking about traumatic incidents with a therapist, supportive family or friends can be therapeutic, producing improvements in psychological and physical health. People who open up about traumatic events they have experienced ...
• Why Do Abused Victims Stay?
  It can be difficult for many people to understand why a person would stay in an abusive relationship, but there are many reasons. Strong emotional and psychological forces keep the victim tied to the abuser. ...
• Call Me Crazy
  Everyone knows Anne Heche most famously from her role as half of the Ellen DeGeneres/Anne Heche gay couple. Yes, she's starred in a few movies, some of which have done well, others not so much, ...