Have you ever experienced abuse or know someone who has witnessed abuse? Different kinds of abuse can vary from emotional to physical, such as toxic friendships. Imagine seeing your favorite cousin or your mom suffer from these kinds of abuse. You wouldn’t take it so lightly now, would you? As a person who has experienced toxic friendships, it can really take a toll on your mental health, and it can change how you trust people. Physical abuse can do the same, although it can cause more physical damage. Abuse can also cause you to have severe PTSD.
Adults and parents need to put a stop to emotional, physical, and mental abuse because it can permanently affect teens, such as forever flinching at a raised hand, no matter how far it is, and it can also make them hyperaware. This can cause teens to not have the time to actually enjoy life, which can lead to even greater struggles. According to Mission Prep: AMFM Healthcare, emotional abuse can cause teens to be socially awkward and can totally impact their social well-being. Emotional abuse can also cause teens to try to put others into misery, for example, bullying others verbally because they already know how it feels. Another article that talks about another form of abuse is from Nationwide Children’s Hospital. They state that child abuse doesn’t often occur from a stranger; it happens inside the walls of their life. Child abuse can have a long-lasting impact on a child’s life. MIT human resources says teens cover up their abuse with a hard outer shell to cover up the misleading thoughts and actions in their lives. These actions can cause anxiety. Experiencing abuse or other trauma puts people at risk of developing mental health conditions, such as PTSD, depression, and misuse of drugs and alcohol. A child safety organization based in Los Angeles states that child abuse plays a major role in a child’s physical and mental state. Abuse can last forever and cause permanent damage to a child.
According to the nimh.nih.gov, “Helping Children and Adolescents Cope With Traumatic Events,” one way to help with abuse is creating a calming environment so the kid can know that they have people who care for them and a safe space. If there is ever a situation where a parent cannot create a calming or safe environment, they can go to a mandated reporter, such as a teacher, or visit the DC Mandated Reporters webpage, called CFSA. This webpage takes reports of child abuse and neglect 24 hours a day. This hotline is a gateway to protection and is an awesome help for child victims and those at risk up to age 18 in the District of Columbia. Also, omahaimagine.com has an article called” How to Cope with Emotional Abuse as a Teen,” which states some techniques that can help, such as trauma therapy, forgiveness, and meditation. Other ways can help, such as self-care, journaling, and setting boundaries. Another way that can help is to isolate oneself from the toxicity in one’s surroundings. All adults need to do is support their children in their decisions because at a time like that, they only need support and love.
It should be clear by now from what you’ve read that child abuse is more damaging than you think, and some kids have not gotten the help they deserve. As a person who has personal experience with emotional and mental abuse, I was lucky to have people in my corner and places where I can all be safe spaces. Most kids aren’t that fortunate, so they have to suffer alone. However, the resources that I stated in this essay are some ways to help.
