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Emotional
- Shame, guilt, and self blame, "I caused
it", or "I should have been able to stop it"
- Grief for family and personal losses
- Confusion about conflicting feelings toward
parents
- Fear of abandonment, of expressing
emotions, of the unknown, of personal injury
- Anger about violence and the chaos in their
lives
- Depression, feelings of helplessness and
powerlessness
- Embarrassed by the effects of abuse and the
dynamics at home
Behavioral (may be seen on opposite extremes)
- Acting out versus withdrawing, aggressive
versus passive
- Overachiever versus underachiever
- Refusal to go to school
- Caretaking, more concern for others than
self, acting as a parent-substitute
- Lying to avoid confrontation, pretending
everything is ok to avoid problems
- Rigid defenses (aloof, sarcastic,
defensive, "black and white" thinking)
- Excessive attention seeking, often using
extreme behaviors
- Bedwetting and nightmares
- Out of control behavior, not able to set
own limits or follow directions
- Reduced intellectual competency
- Manipulation, dependency, mood swings
Social
- Isolation from friends and relatives
- Relationships that are frequently stormy,
start intensely and end abruptly
- Difficulty in trusting, especially adults
- Poor anger management and problem solving
skills
- Excessive social involvement to avoid home
life
- Passivity with peers or bullying toward
peers, play with peers exceedingly rough
- Engaged in exploitative relationships,
either as perpetrator or victim
Physical
- Somatic complaints, headaches and
stomachaches
- Nervous, anxious, and short attention
spans, frequently misdiagnosed as ADHD
- Tired and lethargic
- Frequently ill
- Poor personal hygiene
- Regression in development, thumb sucking
- Desensitization to pain
- High risk play and activities
- Self abuse
- Adolescent eating disorders, substance
abuse, delinquency, suicide
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