Children
who are being sexually abused often actively resist taking off their clothes,
even for appropriate activities like bathing. They demonstrate avoidance
behaviors, including misbehaving and attempting to redirect. Such behaviors are
detectable warning signs of sexual abuse.
A
demand by staff that a child take a shower was a common precipitators of
restraints at Valley of the Moon Children’s Home. Twenty-nine times, physical restraints followed after a child
being told to take a shower or bath because a child had an extreme reaction to
the order to shower.[1]
After
being asked to take a shower, the children quickly devolved. In some cases,
they would run around the facility, try to run away, throw things at staff, and
erect barricades made of toys or other materials. When the passive actions did
not work, the child resorted to violence to prevent taking a shower.
Luke,
a seven year old boy, was told by a female supervisor to take a shower. [2]
Luke walked away and tried to avoid taking a bath. He tried to convince staff
to let him play foosball. When he was told no, he said “I’m not going to take a
fucking bath.” He escalated. He ran outside and tried to escape the facility
but children are locked in using a locked gate. He tried climbing the locked
gate. Eventually Luke re-entered the facility and jumped up on a counter. Staff
pulled him down, accidently dropping him on his face on the counter, injuring
him. He had to go to the hospital.
It seems Luke
was just one of many children who were so terrified of taking a shower or bath,
they took vehement measures to escape it.
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