Sexual Abuse – Laura K Kerr, PhD

Fostering Self-Regulation Following Sexual Abuse

Dec 5, 2024

My surname, Kerr, is thought to originate with the Gaelic caerr, which means “left.” Many of my ancestors, the Clan Kerr of Scotland, were left-handed (and I am too), which led to the Scottish expression Kerr-fisted to describe a left-handed...

Making Sense of Senselessness

Nov 12, 2024

Traumatic experiences like sexual abuse leave us with more than flashbacks and symptoms like depression and anxiety. They impact our self-concept and how we make sense of our place in the world. Many of us wonder: What kind of person am I for this to have happened to...

Cautionary Words for Recovery from Sexual Trauma

Sep 16, 2024

One of the more consequential mistakes on my quest to recover from sexual trauma was my lack of discernment about the type of care I needed. Instead of guided by clear objectives, I was driven by a panicky urgency to escape anxiety and despair. I accepted the first...

The Loveless Trajectory of Sexual Abuse

Apr 24, 2024

Long before their falling-out, Carl Jung shared a tragic memory in a letter to Sigmund Freud: “… as a boy I was the victim of a sexual assault by a man I once worshipped” (cited in John Kerr’s A Most Dangerous Method). Jung also shared his infatuation with...

The Destructive Silence Surrounding Sexual Abuse

Jan 29, 2024

According to a 2014 World Health Organization Report, and data from one hundred thirty-three countries representing eighty-eight percent of the world’s population, nearly one in five women were sexually abused in early life. Yet only a third are thought to have...

Psychological First Aid for Sexual Abuse in Adolescence and Early Adulthood

May 9, 2022

Sexual abuse can happen to anyone at any age, although it is a crime perpetrated largely against youths, especially during adolescence and early adulthood. Tragically, relatively few receive the professional support they need. For many, the failure to access care is...