NCJ Number
194953
Journal
Child Abuse Review Volume: 11 Issue: 1 Dated: January-February 2002 Pages: 51-64
Date Published
2002
Length
14 pages
Annotation
The article presents research concerning physical syndromes and symptoms in adult women survivors of child sexual abuse and explores whether these physical manifestations are psychologically driven or the result of an undetected physical injury which occurred at the time of the abuse.
Abstract
The author studied unexplained physical symptoms in adult women survivors of child sexual abuse. Certain physical problems have an increased incidence in adult women who experienced child sexual abuse. Examples of these physical symptoms include chronic pelvic pain, irritable bowel syndrome, fibromyalgia, Paradoxical Vocal Cord Dysfunction, muscular pain, and stiffness. These physical syndromes have been identified as part of a process of somatization which the author defines as "the expression of emotional pain and psychosocial stress through the physical language of bodily symptoms." The potential role of somatization as a predictor of child sexual abuse is discussed. The author gathered research to show that somatization is an inadequate explanation for these adult physical symptoms, and used a review of Paradoxical Vocal Cord Dysfunction and Globus syndrome to demonstrate the inadequacy of the somatization hypothesis. The author suggests further research that should be conducted to explore the link between actual physical damage incurred at the time of the abuse and physical syndromes appearing in or continuing later in life. 31 References