An Ounce of Prevention

Posted by Home Start Intern-Jen

With two months into my internship and a caseload half full, I can already say that I am being challenged.  I made it through the initial flood of new information, trainings, and accompanying insecurities feeling lucky to have found my sea legs.  I have learned to not stay too late, make my mental and physical health a priority, and have “good boundaries” in psychology talk.  There is one case, however, that I struggle to keep in perspective.  The case is not the over-parentified child from an abusive home or the number of childhood neglect cases I have witnessed and reported, but instead a group of women I see on a weekly basis.  There is nothing else that has sold me more on the benefits of Home Start programs than the experience of facilitating their recovery. 

These are women with whom we encounter every day, in the workplace, around town, possibly our neighbors.  They do not stand out from the crowd and their lives reflect a strong work ethic and compassion for others.  What they do share is a childhood of fear, horror, and repeated victimization that still haunts them today.  All of these women were chronically abused by immediate family members with the majority being victims of incest.  When talking with these courageous women, I was shocked to find out that most had never seen a therapist before and one woman had never disclosed her abuse.  Being in the mental health field it is easy to forget that not everyone goes to therapy, as we are surrounded by it every day!  Their abuse was never recognized or treated, and as a result has struggled in silence with issues of shame, guilt, and betrayal.  As adults some numbed their pain with substances, others found themselves in emotionally abusive relationships. 

I remember driving home one night feeling deeply affected by one woman’s story.  I kept picturing her as a child, possibly as my client, and wondered what her life would be like if her abuse was prevented or treated early on.  The fact is I will never know.  I can only focus my efforts on the present.  With sexual abuse prevalence rates ranging from 15% to 30% for female children, the value of preventing lifelong suffering like hers is immeasurable.