"Children born to survivors of sexual violence experience trauma just like their mothers"
"I have asked myself hundreds of times
whether I am a good mother", says the survivor of sexual violence, Shyrete
Tahiri-Sulimani. This shows that she has never been able to completely overcome
her terrible experiences, thus reflecting on her daughters as well. In addition
to Shyrete, the study carried out in Kosovo shows that the traumas of sexually
abused women are also passed on to their children.
On Thursday, KRCT (Kosova Rehabilitation Centre
for Torture Victims) published the research "Can family intervention
reverse the effects of maternal Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and the
transgenerational trauma which may lead to epigenetic modification in the next
generation?”. Children showed changes in cortisol levels and mental health
problems.
62 mothers and 62 children were included in this research, where the findings suggest the potential for interventions to interrupt the transmission of trauma...
