These signs warn of a child being sexually assaulted

German social worker Tanya von Bodelschwing said that parents can infer that a child has been sexually assaulted through sudden changes in his behavior and health.

Psychological and physical signs

The German expert explained that these changes include psychological and physical signs, noting that the psychological signs are sadness, depression, isolation, aggression, and engaging in age-inappropriate sexual behavior, in addition to not wanting to meet a specific person or go somewhere in particular and the desire to harm oneself.

Physical signs include fatigue, exhaustion, headaches, abdominal pain, and eating disorders.

How to act؟

As for how to act when noticing these signs, the social worker explained that parents must speak clearly with the child about this suspicion that they have, taking into account encouraging the child to speak by giving him enough confidence and expressing support and assistance to him and standing by him while taking care not to reprimand him or make accusations against him.

Parents can encourage the child to reveal the details of the sexual assault by asking open-ended questions such as: Who hurt you? What did you do together? While taking care to be calm and patient and not put any pressure on the child to force him to disclose the details of the assault, because if the child feels pressured, he may completely shut down. When the child discloses the details of the incident, the parents should express their belief and provide support and assistance to him. After that, a psychologist should be consulted so that the child undergoes appropriate psychological treatment to help him overcome this bitter psychological experience.