As if women who suffer from sexual abuse don't have enough challenges in healing and moving on with their lives, a medical expert from the Mayo Clinic has revealed there are also physical side effects that plague victims sometimes as long as the emotional side effects.
According to Dr. Larry Bergstrom, MD, Director of the Integrative Medicine Program at the Mayo Clinic Scottsdale Arizona the emotional stress of being a victim of sexual abuse may lead to physical illness such as fibromyalgia, chronic pain, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and even cancer.
"I've seen in my referral practice that about 75 percent of my patients who suffer from fibromyalgia have sexual abuse in their past," Dr. Bergstrom said. "It's common for victims of sexual abuse to develop problems trusting people in their lives, so they develop perfectionist personalities, which drive them to be compulsive 'people pleasers' and make them believe they have to do everything themselves, otherwise it won't get done right."
These personality traits take their toll on the patients, because they can't do it all, and their compulsions drive extreme amounts of stress into their lives. That stress manifests itself in a wide variety of ways, from simple pain to IBS to even cancer.
No one knows this better than Trish Kinney, who was raised in a sexually abusive environment, which she believes led to her developing a cancerous tumor. Kinney, author of Silver Platter Girl, from Seven Locks Press (www.silverplattergirl.com), absolutely knows there was a relationship between her abuse and her cancer. She also knows that both circumstances can be beaten, because she's done it.
"There is a difference between knowing the truth and telling it," she said. "It's crushing to comprehend that a member of one's own family is capable of such an act, but even more crushing when a victim finally empowers herself to talk about it, and the family refuses to believe her. It is the victim who is sacrificed, who is accused of lying, for the continued empowerment and control of the abuser with no regard for truth or consequences of such behaviors."
But telling is the single most important thing an abused woman can do, Kinney added.
"Every time an abuser chooses to abuse a victim, he takes a chance that he will be exposed, that the victim will tell," she said. "The dynamics of abuse usually protect the abuser and assure the continued silence of the frightened, intimidated victim. But when the victim tells, the abuser loses power. And an abuser without power cannot hurt anyone. An abuser without a victim is powerless. Telling empowers the victim and reduces or eliminates opportunity for further abuse. Our voice is our most powerful weapon. Combine it with the truth and the opportunities for healing are limitless."
More importantly for Kinney, was the recognition that her cancer was directly related to her trauma.
"I gathered all my trauma, turmoil, anger and sorrow and willed it into a physical manifestation so that I could remove it from my psyche by having it removed from my body," she recalled. "I remembered the moment that I began to form the tumor, and I can describe exactly what was inside of it, and back it up with medical aging of the tumor. It was part of my conscious plan to 'get sick to get well.' The deep symbolism of my bone marrow transplant as a transformative rebirth serves as validation that my cancer experience was my path to healing my emotional life."
While difficult to understand, the patients in Dr. Bergstrom's practice are like a snapshot, taken at 10,000 feet above sea level, of the physical toll taken on victims of abuse. The challenge, Kinney added, is to transcend the statistics and accept every woman's journey to healing, no matter what road she chooses to arrive at that destination.
"We are the sum of the things that happen to us, things that we are exposed to, whether or not by our own choice," she said. "we need to choose a way of living that honors who we are, that truthfully examines where we have come from and where we want to go, and makes healing and healthy living a priority.
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
It's Another Trump-Biden Showdown — And We Need Your Help
The Future Of Democracy Is At Stake
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
Your Loyalty Means The World To Us
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
The 2024 election is heating up, and women's rights, health care, voting rights, and the very future of democracy are all at stake. Donald Trump will face Joe Biden in the most consequential vote of our time. And HuffPost will be there, covering every twist and turn. America's future hangs in the balance. Would you consider contributing to support our journalism and keep it free for all during this critical season?
HuffPost believes news should be accessible to everyone, regardless of their ability to pay for it. We rely on readers like you to help fund our work. Any contribution you can make — even as little as $2 — goes directly toward supporting the impactful journalism that we will continue to produce this year. Thank you for being part of our story.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
It's official: Donald Trump will face Joe Biden this fall in the presidential election. As we face the most consequential presidential election of our time, HuffPost is committed to bringing you up-to-date, accurate news about the 2024 race. While other outlets have retreated behind paywalls, you can trust our news will stay free.
But we can't do it without your help. Reader funding is one of the key ways we support our newsroom. Would you consider making a donation to help fund our news during this critical time? Your contributions are vital to supporting a free press.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our journalism free and accessible to all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. Would you consider becoming a regular HuffPost contributor?
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. If circumstances have changed since you last contributed, we hope you'll consider contributing to HuffPost once more.
Support HuffPostAlready contributed? Log in to hide these messages.