Often abuse in the family comes from older siblings, and can be difficult to manage or escape. The smug look on super old brother tells a different story as he has whacked his baby brother on the head. Most of this abuse takes place out of the parents eye sight and is vehemently denied, but very real.

This child is an indirect victim of an anger filled household, with parents fighting after the children have gone to bed. The sometimes alcohol fueled abuse of the mother as the child cowers helplessly, trying to block out the angry voices, has long lasting effects on their ability to form normal relationships in adulthood.

Often is a house that is run on punitive measures, one form of behavior adapted by a child is to apologize for everything to ward off punishment. It is the opposite os acting out in anger, it is low self esteem turned into a coping behavior.

This child was locked in the basement when he was "bad" and remembers the scurrying sound of rats in the dark.This image is based on a true story, and has left deep emotional scars which have never healed in his 65 years of life. Harsh and unusual psychological punishment is just as damaging in the formative years as physical abuse, but the marks are on the side, and go frequently go unnoticed.

The little nursery rhyme Good Night Sleep Tight is used as a metaphor here for how unsafe this child feels as a menacing figure stands in her door way in the dark. We should allele safe from harm in our homes, and protected by our caregivers. Sadly, that is not always the case. Nighttime came cover the tracks of predators.

This little girl has been punished for being "bad", to the point of being physically abused. Young children do not understand the concepts of "good" and "bad". This use of force on a powerless child creates many self esteem issues as well as a deep seeded anger about being a victim.