The Effects of Emotional Abuse on an Individual

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Did you know that approximately one third of Canadians have experienced child abuse (CBC Radio, 2014) and that approximately 10.4% of Canadians have a mental illness (Mood Disorders Society of Canada, 2009)? That’s three million, five hundred thousand people dealing with mental illnesses. These are uncommon conversation topics in today’s society, because most people do not like to talk about it. The two statistics above are connected; many people who experience abuse are prone to mental illness. When a child is sexually abused, or physically abused, there are visual effects on the person. Everyone knows the signs of a sexually abused victim but, most people do not recognize or even know the effects of emotional abuse. Emotional abuse is the hidden scars; the scars that people do not see that can cause a lifetime of abuse. These invisible scars can affect a person’s development from childhood through adolescence to adulthood, as an individual struggles to accept their self. Emotional abuse negatively impacts an individual’s self-esteem, which in turn can cause depression and substance abuse later in adulthood.
Experiencing emotional abuse as a child can lead to a decrease in self-esteem as an adolescent. Many parents do not know the difference between common angry outbursts and emotional abuse. The easiest way to define the two, would be that common anger usually concludes with the parent’s apologizing for their actions in more cases. Forms of emotional abuse include “belittling, exploiting, denying, rejecting, isolating, inconsistency, neglecting, and violence” (Kairys, Johnson, Committee on Child Abuse and Neglect, 2002); possibly interactions witnessed by many children. The key that makes them abusive is the repetit...

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... - drinking “can damage a student's ability to study well and get decent grades, as well as affect [their] sports performance.” (KidsHealth, 2013). It can also affect a teenager’s body weight, making them lose even more self-esteem concerning their body weight. Drugs, along with alcohol, cause damage to one’s body, and are “often reasons why teens get in dangerous situations like unprotected sex and drunk driving” (KidsHealth, 2012). When teens become adults, undealt with substance abuse can also affect their lives. Possibly ruining relationships and friendships, causing them to lose a job, or have less money. Substance abuse is a serious topic in today’s society. “Alcohol addiction is 10 times higher in those who experienced abuse” (CBC Radio, 2014) and because of their self-esteem, they are more vulnerable to abuse drugs and alcohol to make them feel better.

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