Treatment for Prolonged Depression and Justice in Court Are Both Needed by Victims of Childhood Abuse

By Devin Storey
ZalkLaw Firm
March 12, 2014

http://zalkin.com/blog/treatment-for-prolonged-depression-and-justice-in-court-are-both-needed-by-victims-of-childhood-abuse/?utm_source=Campaign+Created+2014%2F02%2F26%2C+4%3A14+PM&utm_campaign=Enewsletter&utm_medium=email

In an article published on Allvoices.com, the author discussed a report by researchers at the University of Toronto that was published in January in Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology.  The article, entitled “New study reveals childhood abuse prolongs depression recovery” examined the study’s findings that adults who were subjected to physical, sexual or emotional abuse as children, faced a far longer road to recovery from depression than those who were not abused.  The study followed 1,128 depressed adults for up to 12 years and determined that adults who survived abusive childhoods experienced an average delay of nine months in bringing their depression into remission when compared to those who were not abused as children.

Over years of representing survivors of childhood sexual abuse, many clients of The Zalkin Law Firm have experienced depression and periods of crisis.  And, while childhood abuse may result in physiological changes that prolong recovery, other studies show that professional intervention can be effective in aiding those suffering from depression to recover more quickly than those who remain un-treated by mental health professionals.  As childhood sex abuse attorneys, we have seen first-hand the benefit our clients have experienced as a result of timely treatment by mental health practitioners, and that healing can occur when a motivated survivor of abuse secures treatment from a qualified mental health professional.

For those who have not endured depression, it is difficult to fully comprehend how debilitating this condition can be.  Depression can rob a person of the motivation to seek help for their condition thereby extending the period of depression and exacerbating the person’s suffering.  Any delay in the recovery time of a person suffering from depression can be catastrophic, and the average delay of nine months experienced by survivors of childhood abuse and trauma can seem like a lifetime.

As strong believers in the benefits of therapy and the cathartic effect of standing up to those who caused the abuse through the litigation process, the attorneys at The Zalkin Law Firm believe that proactive steps can be used to truncate the period of suffering, and we are committed to helping our clients receive both justice in the courts and the treatment they need to flourish in their lives.