Discovering that your child has been sexually abused is a life altering moment.  Everything that you believed about your child’s world changes, and you immediately want to fix it.  However, fixing it is easier said than done.  Whether you can actually fix it is actually debatable depending on who you ask.  But, you can seek to ensure that the abuser is charged and punished for their crimes; you can seek counseling for your child to begin the process of mental and emotional healing, you can take your child to a medical doctor to ensure that any physical damage is addressed, and you can support your child emotionally throughout their lifetime.  With all of that said, there is one more thing that you can do…. commit to helping others.

Becoming an advocate for child sexual abuse prevention and supporting survivors (including the parents of survivors) are two important aspects of helping others and it will only cost you your time.  There are free resources that you can tap into to learn more about child sexual abuse and the behavioral cues/grooming strategies of predators, so that you can become a committee of one to spread the word about awareness and prevention.  You can seek out support groups to join in an effort to provide emotional support to those who have been affected by this unnecessary evil as well as to continue your own personal journey to healing.

The idea that we take our experiences and allow shame and guilt to send us running into hiding is exactly what predators want.  However, we must do the exact opposite.  We must take a stand for our children – for all children.  Even if our children aren’t quite ready to publicly acknowledge their experience, we can still support others privately and even anonymously.  The idea is simply to do something…..do something that will help us all fight against child sexual abuse.  Together we must believe that our efforts will make a difference while we take the journey to healing together.