Sexual abuse is when someone engages in sexual acts (touching or non-touching) with a child. Sexual abuse may be perpetrated by an adult, adolescent or child who forces, persuades or manipulates the victim.
Touching sexual abuse can include:
- Touching a child’s private areas when there is no appropriate purpose, such as medical care or caregiving
- Making a child touch someone else’s genitals
- Playing sexual games
Non-touching sexual abuse can include:
- Showing pornography to a child
- Exposing a person’s genitals to a child
- Prostituting/trafficking a child
- Photographing a child in sexual poses
- Forcing or encouraging a child to watch or hear sexual acts
Sexual abuse can have lasting long-term affects physically and mentally, including:
- Unplanned pregnancies
- Chronic health conditions
- Depression
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Substance abuse
- Increased risk of suicide
Warning Signs of Sexual Abuse: Many items on this list are contradictory. The most important thing to notice is a change from what is normal for the child. Always trust the child. If they aren’t comfortable, listen, even if they can’t verbalize exact reasons.
Physical warning signs of sexual abuse:
- Sexually transmitted infections (STIs)
- Signs of trauma to the genital area, such as unexplained bleeding, bruising, or blood on the sheets, underwear, or other clothing
Behavioral warning signs of sexual abuse:
- Excessive talk about or knowledge of sexual topics
- Keeping secrets
- Not talking as much as usual
- Not wanting to be left alone with certain people or being afraid to be away from primary caregivers, especially if this is a new behavior
- Regressive behaviors or resuming behaviors they had grown out of, such as thumbsucking or bed wetting
- Overly compliant behavior
- Sexual behavior that is inappropriate for the child’s age
- Spending an unusual amount of time alone
- Trying to avoid removing clothing to change or bathe
Emotional warning signs of sexual abuse:
- Change in eating habits
- Change in mood or personality, such as increased aggression
- Decrease in confidence or self-image
- Excessive worry or fearfulness
- Increase in unexplained health problems such as stomach aches and headaches
- Loss or decrease in interest in school, activities, and friends
- Nightmares or fear of being alone at night
- Self-harming behaviors
- Heightened anxiety
- Depression symptoms
If you suspect sexual abuse, you should report it to DSS and law enforcement. For more information on reporting abuse, visit our Recognize, Respond, Report page.
