HomeAnswersPsychiatryemotional abuseI am extremely emotional and self-harm because of childhood abuse. Please help.

I was abused in my childhood and suffering from deep emotions. Please help.

Share

The following is an actual conversation between an iCliniq user and a doctor that has been reviewed and published as a Premium Q&A.

Medically reviewed by

iCliniq medical review team

Published At August 13, 2016
Reviewed AtAugust 3, 2023

Patient's Query

Hi doctor,

I am an 18 year old girl. When I was seven, my older brother (12) used to molest me. I do not know if it was traumatic as I do not remember crying or anything. Does this count as sexual abuse? Because of the young age of my brother, I do not know if it is related. But, I am extremely emotional, self-harm and do a lot of things without thinking. Sometimes, I think about seeing someone when I am really depressed and feel empty, but this only lasts like a few hours and then I feel fine.

Answered by Dr. Sathya Prakash

Hi,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

Although what happened to you in your early childhood is beyond doubt, I would advise you to desist from making any correlation between your current problems and the abusive incidents. Like you accurately pointed out, at that age, you were unaware of the nature of the acts and therefore, it is unlikely to have caused any mental trauma. This has been demonstrated in certain scientific studies as well, although might appear awkward from a societal perspective. If you try to correlate the two too much, you will be needlessly creating and aggravating a psychological trauma. In any case, I think that your current symptoms are part of your personality and unrelated to the unfortunate incidents. So, do not worry and be happy. If you are independently concerned about the symptoms (beyond its relation to the abuse), then you might want to consult a psychologist or psychiatrist. Please bear in mind that all this advice is from a strictly scientific and psychological standpoint and not from a legal or moral or social and cultural standpoint. Take care.

Same symptoms don't mean you have the same problem. Consult a doctor now!

Dr. Sathya Prakash
Dr. Sathya Prakash

Psychiatry

Community Banner Mobile
By subscribing, I agree to iCliniq's Terms & Privacy Policy.

Read answers about:

emotional abusechild abuse

Ask your health query to a doctor online

Psychiatry

*guaranteed answer within 4 hours

Disclaimer: No content published on this website is intended to be a substitute for professional medical diagnosis, advice or treatment by a trained physician. Seek advice from your physician or other qualified healthcare providers with questions you may have regarding your symptoms and medical condition for a complete medical diagnosis. Do not delay or disregard seeking professional medical advice because of something you have read on this website. Read our Editorial Process to know how we create content for health articles and queries.

This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. iCliniq privacy policy