Self Disclosure

In the June 2005 edition of Families in Society an article entitled "Speaking the Unspeakable: Exploring the Impact of Family Dynamics on Child Sexual Abuse Disclosure" by Ramona Alaggia and Stacey Kirshenbaum discusses problems with disclosure of abuse. Self-disclosure in our textbook, is defined as “voluntary sharing information about ourselves.“ My family was torn by sexual abuse perpetrated by a step father 15 years ago. He later went to prison for this abuse. I have always struggled with the guilt of not recognizing this abuse earlier. Since I was not directly abused, those abused feel I have no right to disclose this information to others, and were even upset when I told my wife. I feel that I was a victim, those I love were hurt by someone I trusted. Telling others, in confidence, has always been a relief to me. It can help others to understand where I'm coming from, when I discuss things to look for; hopefully, lessening the likelihood this will happen to their family.