Child sexual abuse is not a single event—it is often a sustained disruption to development that can shape a person’s emotional world, relationships, identity, and life trajectory over time. Its effects may emerge, recede, and re-emerge across the lifespan, often in ways that are misunderstood or overlooked.
This keynote invites participants to understand child sexual abuse not simply as an internal experience, but as a relational betrayal and violation that alters the course of development and connection. This understanding provides critical guidance for how we recognize, respond to, and support those affected.
Dr. Lori Haskell, a nationally recognized expert in trauma, challenges conventional approaches that treat child sexual abuse as a time-limited clinical issue. She calls for a developmentally informed, trauma-responsive perspective that recognizes the evolving needs of survivors across the lifespan—from early childhood through adulthood and into later life.
Drawing on neuroscience, clinical practice, and decades of work with justice and health systems, this keynote will explore:
- How child sexual abuse shapes development across emotional, relational, and neurobiological domains
- Why the impact of trauma may re-emerge at key life stages such as adolescence, parenthood, and aging
- The limits of symptom-focused approaches, and the need for long-term, context-sensitive support
This keynote is an invitation to reframe how we understand and respond to child sexual abuse—across clinical, educational, legal, and community settings.
