What is Non-Recent Abuse?
Non-recent child abuse, sometimes called historical abuse, is when an adult was abused as a child or young person under the age of 18. Sometimes adults who were abused in childhood blame themselves or are made to feel it’s their fault. But this is never the case: there’s no excuse for abuse.
You might have known you were abused for a very long or only recently learned or understood what happened to you. Whether the abuse happened once or hundreds of times, a year or 70 years ago, whatever the circumstances, there’s support to help you. It’s never too late to let someone know. There is help available for you.
Effects of non-recent abuse
The impact of child abuse can last a lifetime. Abuse can have a huge effect on your health, relationships, and education and can stop you from having the childhood and life you deserve. You might find it harder to cope with life’s stresses, getting a job, or being the type of parent, you want to be. You may also develop mental health problems and drug or alcohol issues.
The effects can be short term but sometimes they last into adulthood. If someone has been abused as a child, it’s more likely that they’ll suffer abuse again. It is also common for a child who is sexually abused at a young age, to become an abuser as they go forward in life.
The long-term effects of abuse and neglect can include:
- emotional difficulties such as anger, anxiety, sadness or low self-esteem
- mental health issues, like depression, eating disorders, self-harm or suicidal thoughts
- problems with drugs or alcohol
- disturbing thoughts, emotions, and memories
- poor physical health
- struggling with parenting or relationships.