Sexual abuse is an attack on the totality of a human being. It impacts neurobiological functioning, spiritual connection to the self, other, and “the greater.” It is also an attack on a person’s cognitions, emotions, and physiology, including their endocrine and immune systems. Sexual abuse is also an attack on the survivor’s ability to form and maintain social connections. The person is changed, and this is traumatization. But this change needs are not a life sentence; it can be the journey toward post-traumatic growth (PTG). However, the process can feel taxing, especially as survivors try to connect intimately with a partner.

Returning to an act that is similar to the trauma can reflexively invite traumatic reactions. As survivors seek to have sexual intimacy with their partners, for instance, they are engaging with a familiar st ...