Help for abused children

Forms of therapy for children and adolescents

Victims of sexualized violence often feel guilty and withdraw. As childhood traumatization can lead to severe mental illness, sometimes many years later, it is important that children and young people receive psychotherapeutic treatment at an early stage. Playing together allows easier access to children and young people who are often emotionally closed off. Through play, children can directly experience their strengths and limitations and work on their issues in therapy.

The main focus of treatment for complex traumatization is the effort to establish a safe and trusting relationship between the young victim and the therapist. Within such a relationship, the destroyed or non-existent orientation systems are built up. The children and adolescents learn to distinguish between good and evil, wrong and right, and to separate reality from fantasy.

And in music therapy: music is used through playing, listening and in combination with puppetry. As music reaches people on a deep emotional level, it is particularly suitable for dealing with emotional stress. In therapy, free improvisation on instruments creates a musical dialog between the child or young person and the therapist. Feelings and moods are expressed through rhythm, dynamics, melody, sound and form. In this way, the person affected can express themselves non-verbally before words are found for the traumatic event. This approach helps to overcome fears and insecurities and to rebuild a trusting relationship with the environment.

In December 2023, we made a donation of EUR 5,000 to support children and young people affected by these forms of therapy in order to promote the healing process and give them the chance to develop healthily.