Experiences of women healing from childhood sexual abuse

Childhood sexual abuse has affected the lives of countless survivors who se ek help within the health care system. Despite extensive research and clini cal work, many survivors do not receive adequate help. This research aimed to add to the body of clinical knowledge by reporting on the experiences of childhood sexual abuse survivors who have achieved a measure of healing. F indings from a naturalistic study of 14 female survivors of childhood sexua l abuse are presented. The character of healing, the relationship of contex t with healing, what facilitated healing, and what impeded healing are disc ussed. Copyright (C) 2001 by W.B. Saunders Company.