There are few things as disheartening as learning that your beloved child is being abused. It's even worse if you suspect your partner, the child's other parent, is the abuser. Here are some of the signs that should make you suspect a child is being abused.
Unexplained Injuries
Unexplained or poorly explained injuries are some of the most common signs of child abuse. For example, you may notice the child getting "accidental" injuries more frequently than usual. Maybe last week the child explained a cut by claiming an accidental fall, yesterday they explained burn marks by claiming they spilled a hot beverage on their hands and today they are claiming a bump on the table. You should particularly be concerned if the injuries are not very obvious or are in parts of the body usually covered up by clothing.
Declining School Performance
In some cases, a child who is being abused suddenly begins to experience declining school performance. This can be explained by the emotional and psychological effect of child abuse on its victims as well as the reduced class concentration that child abuse may cause. You should particularly be worried if the decline is sharp.
Fear of Being Left Alone
Some children who are being abused may fear to be left alone with the abuser, with the abuser's gender or with others in the same profession as the abuser. For example, they may develop an unhealthy fear of all males if they are being abused by a male. This may be the case even if the child previously didn't have a problem with such demographics.
Declining Interests in Hobbies or Extracurricular Activities
This is another common symptom of child abuse because abuse victims often lose interest in many aspects of life, even those that they used to enjoy before. A child who used to enjoy swimming after school, for example, may declare a sudden loss of interest in the same. Or you may just notice that they don't exhibit the same level of enthusiasm for their favorite activities as they used to do.
Difficulties with Sleep
Lastly, child abuse may also cause sleeping difficulties in its victim. You may find the child waking up multiple times throughout the night, having weird dreams or having nightmares. Again, you should show great concern if such things are relatively new developments in the child's life.
The first thing you should do if you suspect abuse is to confirm your suspicions, which you can do by consulting a doctor and a child psychiatrist. After that, family law firms can help you get the child away from their abusive parent and protect them.
Share17 July 2018
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