The Fishing Challenge

Abstract Childhood sexual abuse can be one of the most traumatizing kinds of experiences one faces in life. It robs children of their innocence and the joy of living. It robs adult victims of their inheritance of positive childhood memories and of the qualities of trust, vulnerability, self-awareness, and confidence that are necessary for success in intimate adult relationships. Research suggests that the problem is getting worse, not better, and that therapists can expect to be treating more and more adults and children whose lives have been touched by this experience and burdened by the painful, shameful, and humiliating memories that accompany the experience of childhood sexual abuse. This paper looks at a creative idea for intervention that assists clients in engaging these experiences and memories and that allows the client to gradually acknowledge and reconnoiter through the intense emotional realities of their abuse experiences, gain confidence in their abilities to overcome the fear and stigmatization, and reconnect to their childhood in ways that produce some positive and empowering “childhood-like” memories that can replace the negative ones.