psychotherapy such as cognitive behavioral therapy family or individual therapy may also provide relief to abuse victims brendan mcdermidreuters yo jackson a professor in the clinical psychology program at penn state university and research professor at the university of kansas agreed it is impossible to predict what will happen to a person after any form of abuse has occurred because of the intimate nature of the crimes for which he was convicted the potential physical and psychological ramifications of sexual assault are numerous and depend greatly on personal characteristics of the victim themselves experts say when this happens it will stall the process of healthy childhood development something she said may result in a delay to reach anticipated developmental milestones or even temporarily lead to a childs developmental regression abuse in particular sexual abuse is a nonspecific risk factor jackson said with nassar sentenced former family friend says my monster is gone olympic committee gives usa gymnastics board 6 days to resign or face punishment elizabeth vargas interviewed 19 women who made victim impact statements at the larry nassar trial in lansing mich jan 24 2018 ge andersonabc sterling riethman speaks at the sentencing hearing for larry nassar in lansing mich on jan 24 2018 brendan mcdermidreuters many victims of sexual assault may later develop generalized anxiety depression or posttraumatic stress disorder ptsd a psychiatric condition in which the victim experiences nightmares flashbacks intrusive thoughts as well as physical symptoms such as jitteriness or whats called an excessive startle response especially when thinking about the trauma or if placed in a situation that reminds them of the event other victims might experience a variety of psychological issues such as lack of trust of authority figures immense feelings of shame guilt selfblame or low selfesteem perhaps the enduring image of this trial for many the scores of women who testified before a judge in the presence of nassar offers a stark picture of this problem some people may use the help of medications to treat the physical symptoms of anxiety depression or ptsd if they experience them a lot of a persons reaction depends on their prior life history how they have cultivated resilience on the sort of treatment they are receiving and whether or not they seek help each person who suffers abuse will have a potentially different reaction said dr gene beresin a professor of psychiatry at harvard medical school and executive director of the massachusetts general hospital clay center for young healthy minds nearly one in five us women have been raped at some point in their lives according to the centers for disease controls national intimate partner and sexual violence survey brendan mcdermidreuters given the many potential effects of sexual abuse treatment depends on the victim and the specific symptoms they experience support groups can be especially helpful because they allow a victim to connect with others who have similar experiences victim emma ann miller l is embraced by her mother