5 Steps to Protect Your Child from Sexual Abuse

kids on grass

Davis House recently held a community education program where they shared 5 steps to prevent sexual child abuse. Before the class started, they shared some startling statistics: last year 505 cases of child sexual abuse were reported in our area.

Davis House is a child advocacy center serving serving the 21st Judicial District of Middle Tennessee including Williamson, Hickman, Lewis and Perry Counties. Being a child advocacy center means they coordinate services to abused children and their families in crisis.  As a 501c3 not-for-profit charity, all of the services provided by the Davis House are at no cost to families.

Davis House is a nationally accredited advocacy with a history of helping families restore a sense of normalcy that allows them to reach their full potential.  Below are 5 steps to protect your children from sexual abuse.

How to Protect Child from Sexual Abuse

 

Youth are 2.5 times more likely to be raped than adults.
About 35% of victims are 11 years old or younger.
9% of 10 to 17-year-olds receive a sexual request while on the Internet
30% of children are abused by family members.
As many as 60% are abused by people the family trusts.

how to protect children from sexual abuse

 

Understand that abusers often become friendly with potential victims and their families, enjoying family activities, earning trust, and gaining time alone with children.

Think carefully about the safety of any isolated, one-on-one settings. Choose group situations when possible.

Think carefully about the safety of situations in which older youth have access to younger children.

Make sure that multiple adults are present who can supervise.

steps to prevent child from sexual abuse

Teach children that it is “against the rules” for adults to act in a sexual way with them, and use examples.

Teach them what parts of their bodies others should not touch.

Be sure to mention that the abuser might be an adult friend, family member, or older youth.

Teach children not to give out personal information while using the Internet, including email addresses, home addresses, and phone numbers.

steps to prevent sexual child abuse

 

Sexual behavior and language that are not age-appropriate can be a red flag.

Be aware that in some children there are no signs whatsoever.

steps to protect children from sexual abuse

 

When you react to disclosure with anger or disbelief, the child will likely:
Feel even more ashamed and guilty.
Shut down.
Change or retract the story, when, in fact, abuse is actually occurring.
Change the story to match your questions so future tellings appear to be “coached.” This can be very harmful if the case goes to court.

Discovery of sexual abuse means that you have witnessed a sexually abusive act by an adult or youth with a child or know by other means that abuse has taken place.

Report all discoveries to law enforcement immediately.

When reporting your discovery, keep these 7 details in mind.

1. Tell the child’s name and where they live.
2.Tell where you are at the present time, where the child is, and where the offender is, if known.
3. Tell what the child said to you.
4. Tell what interactions you saw between the alleged offender and the child.
5. Tell what other behaviors, if any, you’ve observed in the alleged offender.
6. Tell what signs in the child you’ve seen.
7. Tell what access the alleged offender has to the child.

Visit the Davis House website to learn more about what they do and how they advocate for children and families.

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