Do you need help?

Support for a child or young person

It is important that you seek out help if you are worried about yourself, a friend or another family member. Follow these links below and you will find out more about how to find support.

It is important for those who have experienced abuse, that others believe them and allow them to speak about it openly. It is also important to remember that change and recovery can and do happen. For children and young people affected by abuse, there are people and services who can help.

If you are currently experiencing abuse or neglect, either at home or from others you know, or if you have recently experienced abuse or are afraid of someone, it is important for you to talk to someone who can support and help you.

It might be frightening, but it is important that the abuse does stop.

Many children and young people who have been abused describe feeling embarrassed, guilty, ashamed and frightened. They worry that they will get into trouble for talking about what is happening. They worry that they will be blamed. All of these feelings and worries may make it hard to talk about what is happening to you.

It is very important for you to know that the abuse is not your fault. There are people around you who will understand and can help.

It is important for you to talk to someone who can support and help you. You need to find someone who will believe you and help you to decide what you need to do. You may have tried to tell someone and not have been believed or helped. If you keep trying, you will find someone who will believe you and help you to decide what you would like to do about it.

You have a right to safety and protection and to have the abuse stopped.

Your name remains confidential if you give it when you make a report and cannot be released.

In your local area

If you would like to talk to someone you know already or can access locally, it is important to talk to someone you feel comfortable with and trust.

Some suggestions are:

Support for an adult who was abused as a child

If you experienced abuse as a child or young person you may be having any number of feelings and reactions, in any combination. They may fluctuate and come and go, or change over time.

Some of the reactions you might experience include:

These are common reactions. However, each person has his or her own responses to these experiences, so whatever you are experiencing is normal for you. If the effects of abuse are interfering with your life, with what you want to do or the way you relate to other people, you may want to find some support to help you to work through the experiences and move on.

You may not want to do that now. At some time in the future you may realise that something which is troubling you is related to the experience of abuse, and you may decide that you would benefit from some support. It is up to you. No-one can tell you what is best for you.

If you know someone who has been abused

Many of us know people who have been abused, including people in our family, friends or neighbours. It can be difficult to know what to do if we want to help them. The most important things to remember are to:

Click on this link for the National Support Directory

Finding support for yourself

We live in a time of rapid change. Children and young people are growing up in a world very different from the world their parents grew up in.

It is normal for parents to feel stressed out sometimes. Some of the many stresses on parents these days include:

Being a parent can be one of the most complex and difficult tasks some of us ever do, as well as the most rewarding.

Sometimes parents find the demands of parenting very difficult. No parent is perfect and all parents need help at some time.

If you are having a problem with parenting, you are not the only one and you do not have to deal with it alone.

All parents need support. Every parent makes mistakes and learns through experience. Mistakes only count if you keep repeating them. Appreciate that parenting has its ups and downs and accept that this is normal.

Visit www.kidscount.com.au for useful information about parenting.

Finding support

Some things you can do when you are finding your children's behaviour difficult:

Don't let it get worse

If you feel you may hurt, or have hurt your child, it is important that you seek immediate assistance. STOP what you are doing.

THINK about how you and your child are affected by what is happening.

DO something to change things.

GET SUPPORT to make the changes.

Seeking support and assistance can take courage. Taking this step, however, is critical for you and your child.

Seeking support and assistance reflects:

Speak to someone you trust and feel can help you.

Things can change for the better for you and your family. It is up to you to take the next step.