Have you heard about the Adverse Childhood Effects study? The initial phase of the ACE Study was conducted at Kaiser Permanente from 1995 to 1997. More than 17,000 participants completed a standardized physical examination to take part in the study. Adverse Childhood Effects, as you might imagine, are the negative effects that come from trauma and abuse and affect a child's life in huge ways. But the worst part is that what the abuse does to someone will continue ALL their life, and predestine them lives of turmoil and chaos. Children who suffer either repeated or severe trauma will be much more likely to be addicted to substances, less likely to get and keep a job, more often divorced, if married, they may have troubled intimate relationships. People who suffer repeated abuse are more likely not to complete school and not to continue to college.
Equally alarming, this population is subject to many more illnesses than most of the rest of us. These are serious illnesses such as: C.O.P.D., heart disease, liver disease, early smoking and illegal drug initiation, sexually transmitted diseases, (STD's), early initiation into sexual activity, unwanted pregnancies, multiple sexual partners and increased risk for intimate partner violence.
In addition to physical and developmental problems, the stress of chronic abuse may result in anxiety and may make victims more vulnerable to problems such as post-traumatic stress disorder, conduct disorder, and learning, attention, and memory difficulties (Dallam, 2001; Perry, 2001). More recently, doctors are looking at the idea that the reason so many of our young children have been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), is really because their symptoms have been misdiagnosed, and were symptoms of trauma. Hyper-vigilance (being extra sensitive and vigilant) and dissociation, (being in their "own world") for example, could be mistaken for inattention. Impulsivity (being impulsive) might be brought on by a response to stress in overdrive. Doctors said that despite our best efforts, it was hard to get the symptoms under control, They began to think that perhaps a lot of what we were seeing was more outer behavior as a result of family dysfunction or other traumatic experience. There are a lot of frightening issues that have been brought forward in this study and in all the research after. I believe the information is very important and will continue to be extremely informative to us all.
Carolyn has been providing therapy for clients for 30+ years and although she has worked with all kinds of clients in all kinds of environments, her passion continues to be providing services for clients who have dealt with sexual abuse issues and trauma. She currently provides all types of therapeutic support for victims of sexual abuse assault rape and incest. Serving Ft. Lauderdale, Palm Beach, and Miami area
Carolyn Wilson, M.S.W., L.C.S.W.
Personal Solutions 954-793-3201
Helping you To Find Your Personal Solutions
Carolyn Wilson, M.S.W., L.C.S.W.
Personal Solutions 954-793-3201
Helping you To Find Your Personal Solutions
