Many survivors of childhood trauma do not seek treatment until they are well into adulthood. Often, their presenting complaints may not directly reflect a childhood trauma, but rather the outcome of a lifelong psychological reaction to the trauma. For instance, a survivor of childhood sexual abuse may seek treatment as an adult for a variety of issues, such as depression, alcohol or drug abuse, or insomnia, which may appear unrelated to the abuse.

In this Discussion, you will analyze the long-term effects of childhood trauma on survivors' mental and physical well-being.

To prepare for this Discussion:

• Review this week's resources related to Childhood Trauma, focusing on topics such as child physical and sexual abuse, the importance of trauma diagnosis, and prevention/treatment programs.

• Pay particular attention to how exposure to a childhood trauma might result in a transcrisis state.

• Consider the destructive behaviors that survivors of childhood sexual abuse might exhibit in the absence of appropriate aftercare.

• Reflect on psychological and physical characteristics associated with neglected children. Think about how such characteristics might be indicative of a transcrisis state.

• Think about survivors' cognitive impairments, emotional reactions, and behaviors associated with exposure to family violence. Also, consider how survivors' relationships are affected by exposure to family violence in childhood.

• Consider the long-term psychological and physical effects of child abuse on adult survivors.

• Identify a specific type of childhood trauma (e.g., child physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, or exposure to family violence). Think about how exposure to this type of trauma might result in a transcrisis state. Also, reflect on various behavioral, cognitive, emotional, and psychosomatic characteristics of survivors that might be indicative of a transcrisis state.