Parents of child sexual abuse survivors can become so hyper-vigilant about protecting their child that they disconnect from them. They focus so much on protecting them that they stop celebrating with them, praising them, or even just joining in their lives and playing.

In VIP’s support group for parents, caregivers are able to explore their feelings about their child’s abuse, understand and accept the process that their child is going through, and support one another. Some start off not willing or able to make eye contact with anyone or share any information about their own experiences. By the end of the sessions, they are relying on each other like family.

And the parents’ commitment to the group serves as a model for their children. One little boy told his mother that even though he was not feeling well, she needed to go to her group. Groups like this have created more “positive family meetings” among VIP clients. Parents and children who used to sit in the lobby on opposite sides of the room, now spend their wait time playing and laughing – together.