While no child is immune from sexual abuse there are some risk factors that may increase their liklihood of abuse. Understanding what protective factors can be put into place will ultimately reduce the risk of being traumatized by abuse.

Tip #8 Know How to Respond

For the past twenty years, Meghan Hurley Backofen, LCSW has specialized in providing mental health treatment to child sexual abuse survivors and their families. Meghan is the Core Sexual Abuse Treatment Provider for Garfield County Department of Human Services and works out of the River Bridge Regional Center. This children's advocacy center serves Garfield, Eagle, Pitkin and Rio Blanco Counties in Western Colorado. Meghan is passionate about using evidence based modalities and is a Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy provider. Her experience has allowed her to develop expertise in working with victimized children and their non-offending caregivers. In addition to providing therapy, Meghan is a passionate educator on how to respond to and prevent child trauma. She has a variety of programs that she presents to mental health clinicians, community agencies, and parents. Her most requested class &ldquo;10 Tips: What Caregivers should know to Protect Children from Sexual Abuse&rdquo; inspired her children's book "Who's the Boss of This Body?". Meghan also teaches trauma courses as an adjunct professor for the University of Denver MSW program in Western Colorado. Meghan is especially grateful to all of her former clients for being her greatest teachers, and to her cousin, Adam Arriola and FINAO Agency, for the engaging illustrations in her book.