alcoholism

This study in the National Institute on Drug Abuse's web site reports that women who were sexually abused as children are roughly 3 times more likely to develop drug or alcohol addictions as adults. They were also roughly twice as likely to develop mental disorders such as depression and general anxiety disorder. Originally published in the Archives of General Psychiatry 57(10):953-959, 2000.

Link: http://www.nida.nih.gov/NIDA_Notes/NNVol17N1/Childhood.html

This short article from Clinical Psychiatry News states that addictions are common among men and women who have been sexually abused. It reports that 90% of alcoholic women report sexually abuse or violence as children. It goes on to describe more about how trauma is related to addictions and what the recovery process looks like.

Link: http://www.clinicalpsychiatrynews.com/index.php?id=2407&cHash=071010&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=37490

This article appears on the Australian Institute of Family Studies; it presents an overview of the effects childhood sexual abuse has on adult survivors. Among the issues it reports are alcoholism, intimacy, self-esteem and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It's a good overview and worth the time for partners of survivors to read.

Link: http://www.aifs.gov.au/nch/pubs/issues/issues9/issues9.html

This study, sponsored by the National Institutes of Health and published in 2003, found that a history of childhood sexual abuse is one of the strongest predictors of subsequent alcohol problems in women. It is also associated with increased rates of risky sexual behavior and suicidal thoughts.

Link: www.clinicalpsychiatrynews.com/article/S0270-6644(01)70250-0/fulltext

For resources on living with an alcoholic partner see: alcoholism.about.com

This article - Couples therapy for women survivors of child sexual abuse who are in addictions recovery: A comparative case study of treatment process and outcome - talks about how survivors may be more prone to addictions (the author cites 45% of female survivors experience alcohol addiction), and the role that couples/marriage therapy plays in the recovery process. They review a number of cases and come to five assertions in their conclusion:

1 - Couples therapy is of benefit, mostly with communication skills and problem solving
2 - Marital burnout, if at high levels at pretherapy, can be improved through couples therapy
3 - The benefits of couples therapy may be compromised by high stress levels in the family household
4 - Long-lasting effects may not be evident until some time after therapy has been completed
5 - A decrease in the level of depression reported by more troubled partners is not a good indicator of couple improvement

Link: findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3658/is_200101/ai_n8943277