The Effects Of Psychophysiological Abuse On Children As They Grow Up
“When is a monster not a monster? When you love it.” This quote by Caitlyn Siehl demonstrates the human ability to overlook flaws and shortcomings within our society. This is often a positive thing. However, nearly “700,000” children are abused annually in the United States. For “78%” of these children, their parent is their monster and more often than not that monster demands love and respect (“National Children's Alliance”). These children face several different types of abuse ranging from sexual assault to emotional abuse. If one could fully understand how abuse happens and why one may find the answer to locking away the monster.
In beginning to understand how exactly abuse affects the growth of a child, one must first understand the different types of abuse, the reasoning behind them, then and only then one can broach the topic of its harms. As a society, it is needed to put more emphasis on a healthy childhood for a healthy adulthood and finally a healthy people. A rising trend among Americans is that of apathetitism, the belief that others are unworthy of their empathy. This is, in fact, a direct product of childhood abuse as well as one of the ardent drivers of the continual abuse of juveniles. As one could see, it is imperative to cease the wheel of adolescent exploitation. There comes a point in everyone’s life when they stop running from their monsters and fight them instead. This culture, however, has taken to blaming victims. Of course, this has only aided the “monsters” in question. By studying the effects of psychophysiological abuse on children as they grow, humans can stop the debasement of the most innocent form of life.
According to Christine Hammond, there are three main categories of abuse with several branches. The most talked about is that of the physical tier. Less accredited is that of mental abuse. Finally, there is the little known spiritual misconduct. Spiritual abuse has its own grouping due to its unique ability to not only blend the two other categories but also include horrors of its own. Within the term physical abuse, the sublevels; financial and sexual are included. Solely focusing on the broad term, the following devices are often used. The act of restraining a child consists of not only the physical tieing of a child to an object but also the locking and blocking of doors. Aggression implies deeds such as hitting, punching, and other such specific attacks on the child’s person. Endangerment takes the abuse to the next level by introducing threats of death and weapons.
Financial abuse entails the confiscation and strict regulation of the victim's money. It goes above and beyond normal parenting by implementing tactics like stealing and either negligently using their child’s name for money or purposely tearing down the child in terms of money. One of the most perverse types of abuse is the sexual exploitation of an adolescent. This includes the use of fear tactics, grooming, and molestation in the hopes of raping the child. Children cannot give consent, as such any action taken against or with the child is molestation. The next level of desecration comes from mental abuse. Once more it can be defined broadly than broken down into the two subcategories; verbal and emotional abuse. To begin the expansive term generally includes the use of extreme emotions to manipulate a child's view of themselves, the world around them, and their abusers. Verbal abuse works in a finer tuned way to focus on belittling the child and attacking their beliefs, sense of self, and safety. Lastly, in this category, emotional abuse is often the most unnoticed. It is a subtle form debasement. This type of victimizer prefers to confuse, alienate, and cause extreme stress upon the sufferer. Finally, the unique division of spiritual abuse exists exclusively in religious households.
However, this goes beyond regulated piety. In this instance parents brainwash their children to label, ostracized and obey them totally in all matters pious or not. They enforce this with fear tactics and physical attacks. This can lead to a split set of self among victims. If a child chooses to disobey they stand to lose their parents love and respect (Hammond). When one talks about childhood abuse, the first question asked is often; Why would anyone harm their child? As previously stated apathetism has become apart of the seemingly endless cycle of abuses. Similarly, the abuse of parents in their childhood often gives way to the psychological breeding ground for more abuses.
According to Dr. Allen, “although a majority of abused children do not grow to abuse their own, there is a mentality giving rise among survivors”. This mentality is usually characterized by the following mantra, "It was OK that you abused me because look how awful I am. I clearly deserved whatever it was that you dished out to me. I even do the exact same things you did. In fact, I did things to my kids that are actually much worse than what you did to me." They justify their own actions blaming their own abusive parents (“The Family Dynamics of Severe Child Abuse”). America has had a growing epidemic of mental illnesses. A study by Psychiatric Services suggests that “8 million Americans suffer from these serious psychological disorders” (Macmillan). These disorders often include depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, as well as severe anger issues. As one might expect, these disorders can have violent tendencies. When a parent has a psychotic break it often leads to the direct harm of their offspring. The often malicious intent of these attacks has lasting effects on both physical health and mental stability.
A UCLA study finds links to “18 health markers” in adults who had previous traumatic experiences. These markers show that the childhood stress leads to multi-system health risks. Luckily, the study also suggests that if these children get help and are introduced to a loving environment the effects are significantly lower (“Abuse, Lack of Parental Warmth in Childhood Linked to Multiple Health Risks in Adulthood”). Harvard Psychology also found a link between adolescent maltreatment and emotional dysregulation. According to the study, “emotional dysregulation is the inability to regulate or tolerate negative emotions. This can lead to anxiety, depression, and other serious psychiatric disorders later in life” (Dvir, Ford, J. D., Hill, M., & Frazier, J. A).
The story of several brave survivors come forward to state some of the effects of abuse that still linger with them. One of many, a victim shares this; “I constantly think I’m not good enough and I’m not smart enough. I was told [this] all my childhood I’ve gone back to university to prove to myself that I am smart enough, but it’s always there in the back of my mind, like a poison, reminding me I’m not good enough, not smart enough.” Yet another says; “I have major issues with anxiety and depression because of my childhood. The biggest factor is I cannot communicate well and I don’t know how to express my feelings with others because I am so used to just holding them inside because I wasn’t allowed to share how I felt. When tense situations arise, I get nauseous and uncomfortable, [and] my anxiety levels skyrocket. Definitely, have a lot of emotional scars from my past, it’s been the hardest thing to conquer.” (Viziri). For many, this pain is too much to bear and for one-third of abused adults, the probability of committing suicide is” 5 times higher than” other adults ( Kennedy-Toronto).
The effects of psychophysiological abuse on children have long-term detrimental effects. However, by helping the populace acumen, humans can halt the procession of abuse. To accomplish this, the multitude must comprehend the types of abuse and why they are divided in much the way they are. Society must grasp what lends the monsters their power to harm. Finally, on the whole humans must sympathize with victims and attempt to aid them. For the continual survival of our species, humans must learn the warning signs of concurrent abuse and later in life the scars they leave behind. Humans must cease their selfish apathies and effectively come together. Can society evolve or will it eventually crumble? Research the warning signs and help where one might see trouble. “The biggest mistake to me, is complacency,” Bonnie Hammer.
Works Cited:
- “Abuse, Lack of Parental Warmth in Childhood Linked to Multiple Health Risks in Adulthood.” Newswise Smart News Connection, 26 Sept. 2013, www.newswise.com/articles/abuse-lack-of-parental-warmth-in-childhood-linked-to-multiple-health-risks-in-adulthood.
- Dvir, Yael, et al. Harvard Review of Psychiatry, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2014, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4091823/3.
- “The Family Dynamics of Severe Child Abuse.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, Feb. 2011, www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/matter-personality/201111/the-family-dynamics-severe-child-abuse.
- Hammond, Christine. “7 Types of Parental Abuse.” The Exhausted Woman, 9 Oct. 2017, pro.psychcentral.com/exhausted-woman/2016/12/7-types-of-parental-abuse/.
