Like other victims, abused children may experience significant psychological distress. Unlike adults, however, they are traumatized during the most critical period of their lives: when assumptions about self, others, and the world are being formed; when their relations to their own internal states are being established; and when coping and social skills are first acquired. This can result in long-term issues for an adult survivor of child sexual abuse.
Sexual abuse affects a survivor's life in many ways. Living day-to-day under traumatic conditions can be physically, emotionally, and psychologically debilitating. Adults may re-experience the childhood trauma by having nightmares or recurrent recollections of the event, and by associating the event with something that is currently happening. Many victims of incest/child sexual abuse may not have memories of it ever happening. In some cases, this is because the abuse occurred while the victim was very young. Others may have literally pushed the memories from their conscious minds in order to survive the abuse. Whether they remember the abuse or not, survivors may still experience the aftereffects. Many abuse victims report that the actual physical sexual abuse was not the worst aspect of the experience; rather, it was carrying such a powerful secret that must be protected.
Adult survivors of child sexual assault may experience periods of grief and loss as a result of the abuse. Many survivors of sexual abuse have experienced the betrayal of a parent, family member, or another significant adult in their lives. In addition, adults that they turned to for help as children may not have believed them. This can intensify and complicate feelings of loss.