NCJ Number
145815
Journal
Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Volume: 32 Issue: 5 Dated: (September 1993) Pages: 967-970
Date Published
1993
Length
4 pages
Annotation
A significant number of children referred for psychiatric treatment have been sexually abused, and one of the most difficult symptom manifestations to treat in young children is anger management.
Abstract
In the reported case, a 4-year-old boy was sexually abused by persons outside the family. He showed symptoms of regressive behavior, including encopresis, enuresis, difficulty sleeping, fearfulness, and recurrent nightmares and had hyperalertness and frequent anger outbursts. Treatment initially involved group therapy with a concurrent parents group. After experiencing little improvement in group therapy, the boy was put in individual play therapy and family therapy. Family therapy proved essential in creating a safe environment for the youth where he could learn to regulate his affect and process his traumatic experience successfully. An appendix notes the changing sequence of the boy's dreams and their indication of progress in therapy. 13 references