WHAT
TO LOOK FOR
A
child who has been physically abused may:
• Cry and put up a fight when it's time
to go to daycare, or appear frightened around the caregiver or
other adults.
• Come home with unexplained bruises, abrasions, burns,
broken bones, black eyes, cuts, bite marks, or other injuries.
Repeated injuries of any type can be a warning sign.
A
child who has been emotionally abused may:
• Display behavioral problems or changes such as shunning a
parent's affections — or, alternately, becoming excessively
clingy — or acting angry or depressed. Abused children often
show extremes in behavior: A normally outgoing and assertive
child may become unusually compliant and passive, while a
generally mild child may act in a demanding and aggressive manner.
• Become less talkative or stop
communicating almost completely, or display signs of a speech
disorder such as stuttering.
• Act inappropriately adult or infantile. For example, a
toddler may either become overly protective and "parental"
toward other children, or revert to rocking and head banging.
• Be delayed physically or emotionally, walking or talking
later than expected or continuing to have regular temper tantrums.
But since every child develops at a different rate, it can be
difficult to determine whether a developmental delay stems from
abuse.
• Complain of headaches or stomachaches that have no medical
cause.
A
child who has been sexually abused may:
• Have pain, itching, bleeding, or
bruises in or around the genital area.
• Have difficulty walking or sitting, possibly because of
genital or anal pain.
• Suffer from urinary tract infections, or suddenly start
wetting the bed.
• Be reluctant to take off his coat or sweater, even on a
hot day, or insist on wearing multiple undergarments.
• Demonstrate sexual knowledge, curiosity, or behavior
beyond his age (obsessive curiosity about sexual matters, for
example, or seductive behavior toward peers or adults
For some people words are just not enough to motivate them into action. They need a visual. I wrestled with putting these pictures up, but sometimes pictures are worth more than any amount of words. Be warned these are actual police photos of children abused and in some cases killed by someone they loved and trusted...their lives were stolen from them. Nobody spoke up, nobody helped these children survive. No matter how you look at it, whether their young lives ended or their wounds healed...some part of them died. These children will never be the same. Having children of my own, I can not even begin to fathom how a person could do these things to an innocent child. I was horrified, and cried when I saw these photos. As I am sure you will if you should decide to go look. And you should cry. These defenseless children couldn't cry for themselves...at the very least they deserve for someone to mourn them...