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There is a secret some victims of childhood sexual abuse will take to their graves, even if they are otherwise able as adults to the discuss the abuse to which they were subjected. This is sexual dysfunction.
Two Types of Scars
Childhood sexual abuse can distort sexual expression in one of two principal ways [1]. Each type of scar negatively impacts victims’ lives.
A. Promiscuity
Many victims will become sexually promiscuous. This demonstrates how little value the abuse taught them they had. The large number of prostitutes who were sexually abused as children illustrate that.
For some of these victims, promiscuous behavior is an attempt to barter for love, since sex is the only medium of exchange they had available. For others, it is an attempt to reclaim ownership of their bodies.
B. Sexual Dysfunction
A smaller percentage of victims will develop sexual dysfunction. This was, in the past, disparagingly termed frigidity, particularly as applied to women [2]. But the problem can afflict both men and women. Desire, arousal, and orgasm can all be impacted.
Sexual dysfunction can range from a decreased interest in sex to the inability to experience sexual pleasure with a partner, pain during intercourse, and outright sexual aversion [3][4][5].
Wherever victims fall in the range, there is great shame associated with the problem. Continue reading
ANNA WALDHERR A Voice Reclaimed, Surviving Child Abuse 