Donna Ferguson of the Department of the Army’s Criminal Investigative Division Strategic Initiatives Groups says, “It’s actually a phenomenon that happens inside of families and describes traumatic experiences by parents that is adversely transmitted or passed down to their subsequent generations.” The resulting effect is that the next generation-i.e., children-are exposed to direct or indirect trauma symptoms, which causes vulnerabilities in their adulthood. This continuous cycle is known as intergenerational trauma. Frequently seeing your parents use maladaptive coping mechanisms when you are a child-such as excessive alcohol consumption, drug misuse or witnessing a parent use violence against a spouse, sibling or other family member-may become ways that you cope with stressors and affect your overall health. Now what if I told you that the trauma or abuse your parents experienced or that they witnessed affects you? Those experiences can be passed from generation to generation, continuing the cycle of trauma and domestic violence. Domestic violence is preventable and usually not an isolated incident. It may include tactics like stalking, isolating and using technology to perpetuate abuse and to control victims. Domestic violence is not limited to physical abuse or battery but includes sexual, emotional, psychological and financial abuse. It most often is used as a synonym for intimate partner violence (IPV), but in the broader sense it includes all forms of familial abuse. Domestic abuse is a complex issue with farreaching consequences, extending beyond its immediate victims. October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, which focuses on raising awareness of violence that affects millions of individuals and families worldwide.

Intergenerational sexual trauma