Abstract: Understanding the Impact of Childhood Sexual Abuse on Women’s Sexuality

Colangelo, J. J. , & Keefe-Cooperman, K. (2012). Understanding the Impact of Childhood Sexual Abuse on Women's Sexuality. Journal Of Mental Health Counseling, 34(1), 14-37. The purpose of this study was to show how childhood sexual abuse (CSA) victims often are faced with negative psychological and emotional consequences which have profound effects on their lives, as well as their sexuality. The intent of the authors was to show the occurrence of CSA among different women populations, and how it negatively affects them for the rest of their lives.The authors also discuss different suggestions for counselors dealing with these CSA victims, and how they must have a vast understanding of how these women compromise their sex lives because of the trauma. The authors state at the beginning of the article that â€Å"the relationship between child sexual abuse and adult sexual functioning is well-established. †(pg 14) So, the author’s intent with this article was to not only pr ovide additional information regarding CSA victims and how that negatively impacts their lives, but provide insight for counselors who are treating these women.The authors explain the different approaches that counselors must practice, and how these can help the CSA victims. The authors’ intentions were not to do a study, but to help people better understand the issue. Although they pulled different statistics from various articles and books explaining how CSA victims are negatively affected through their sexuality, they provided the readers with a specific example, a case study. The case study addresses the issue by giving an example of a girl named Marie.She was sexually abused as a young girl, but successfully received treatment and counseling, which helped her deal with her CSA issues. After a few years, she found her significant other. The problem was, though, she started experiencing â€Å"intense fear of intimacy, and distressing memories re-emerged. † (pg. 24) The authors go onto explain that the initial counseling did not successfully address the issue with intimacy because she was so young. So, they started a different approach which had three different phases for Marie and her fiance.Phase one was â€Å"Therapeutic Alliance† which focused on establishing rapport between the counselor and Marie, which involved different questions, stories, and advice. This would be the foundation for the entire process. Phase two was â€Å"Addressing CSA Trauma Symptoms† which dealt with all the side effects that Marie was experiencing. She initially had a lot of emotional distress and many different situations triggered the experience where she was sexually abused. The phase-oriented trauma-based approach emphasizes addressing the original sexual trauma as the genesis of maladaptive behavioral responses by working through it, helping women first to relive and revise the traumatic experience and then to acquire healthier coping strategies to replace those created to survive the traumatic experience. † (pg. 26) Phase three was â€Å"Individual Growth and Sexual Development† which centered around addressing different sexual concerns with the couple, but moving at their own pace.As said in the case study, Marie started bettering herself by focusing on her development as a person. Although she was always apprehensive when it came to sexual activity, her issues got better, and this helped the relationship with Bob. Treatment for the couple continued after they got married, which helped them in the long-run. There is a lot of documentation and support providing the huge impact that childhood sexual abuse has on each victim. The aim of this article was to give counselors insight on different treatments, and especially address the specific sexual problems that derive from CSA.The authors discuss treatment techniques and different exercises which help various types of clients that seek treatment. The authors go o nto explain that the counselors are the most vital part of the process, they create an environment where they can better themselves and move past the CSA. The authors of this article want the readers to understand the underlying issues and problems that many women face after they have been sexually abused as a child. Usually people recognize that women face sexual problems after they have been abused, but don’t really understand what they go through, or how to help.So, this can be used as a guide for counselors on CSA victims about who they are, how they react to their situations, and ways they can be successful in the future. By writing this article, the authors wanted to help mental health counselors approach the CSA victims in way where they could be better understood. I found this article persuasive in a sense that the authors make the readers really see what these women go through after they are sexually abused as a child. The authors used plenty of statistics, different references, and thorough information on the sexual disorders that derive from CSA and post-health for the victims.I believe the authors did an agreeable amount of research which persuaded the audience to feel for the victims and really a ppreciate the work that must be done so they can deal with their issues. One of the only issues I had was that the authors did not conduct an experiment of their own. I was hoping to see a survey that they had researched and developed, but their case study was more of the focal point of the article. I believe that if they would have done an actual research method themselves, rather than using statistics from elsewhere, there would have been a little more support for their argument.In my opinion, the article was very easy to understand and well written. Each section had its own title, different paragraphs, and organized accordingly. I like the fact that the researchers had a specific case study in which they presented in the article. I believe it he lped the readers understand the article better, and seeing a true example validated the information. By organizing it into different sections, it helped me understand the content better and made reading it easy. Also, this helped me want to read more.Once I read the introduction, I kept wanting to read further, and learn more. The authors did a good job at making me think about the subject matter and get me excited to learn about it. Lastly, the authors of the article did a decent job at tying in other literature and different research. Like I said earlier, they mainly pulled statistics and other information from books and journals, and this supported their claims. By using a third party for more information, this helped the audience understand the problems better.