How can I help my child heal after physical abuse?

Physical child abuse occurs when a child is purposely physically injured or put at risk of harm by another person. It may include any unexplained injuries such as burns, bites, bruises, broken bones or black eyes etc. In many cases, child abuse is done by someone the child knows and trusts, often a parent or other relative. A child who's being abused may feel guilty, ashamed or confused.

Resilience in children enables them to thrive in spite of their adverse circumstances. It involves behaviors, thoughts, and actions that can be learned over time and can be nurtured through positive and healthy relationships with parents and other caregivers and adults who guide them in healthy problem-solving strategies. Here we try to explore strategies for helping your child recover after experiencing physical abuse of any form by keeping in mind the below written points:

·         Have a positive outlook. When faced with a problem; show your child that the problem is only for a short time and that things will get better. Children learn from your ability to bounce back from and work through tough situations.

·         Ensure safety. Address your child’s physical safety first by assuring him or her that no one will physically touch or harm them in future. This will help your child develop feelings of trust and openness to psychological and emotional healing.

·         Address the past as the past. Help your child identify his or her current life that is different from the past. Make them understand that the past is gone now and future is ahead. Don’t talk about the incident repeatedly with child or with others. The details of the case should only be discussed in absence of child.

·         Don’t blame the child. Never blame the child for the ill happenings. Make them realize that the incident just happened and it was not their fault. They just needed to be preventive.

·         Provide care and support. Express love, empathy and support verbally and physically. Ensure care, attention and satisfaction of emotional needs.

·         Allow children to express their feelings. Teach them how to identify and describe their feelings and commend them for expressing feelings of hurt or sadness without acting out.

·         Protect them for future. Use this as a chance to teach expectations and personal boundaries i.e. limits set in relationships that protect our sense of self. This is required so as to avoid similar situations in future again.

·         Build Confidence. Help child to rejoin school, recreational classes or pursue hobbies and interests. The life should move on without break.

·         Build connections. Create bonds with friends and family that can support your child during challenges so that the social circle doesn’t hampers.

·         Be patient. Children’s reactions to trauma vary as widely as the types of trauma one can experience. Healing takes time so be patient.

The healing process does not always follow a clear, straight path. Time is the best healer and children are good at adapting to it. Soon your child will be seen keeping up with his/her friends, doing well in studies and day to day activities like before as if nothing happened.

CHILDLINE is a 24-hour emergency outreach service for children in need of care and protection in India. Any child/concerned adult can dial 1098 to access this service. CHILDLINE has been provided support to physically abused children from various cities/districts. During the year 2018-19, a total of 16,680 cases of physical abused were intervened by CHILDLINE forming 6% of total cases assisted.