David Pelzer was just a little boy when his abuse began, at just four years old. After reading his book, A Child Called "it", he described how his mother abused him. His mother was an alcoholic and had no feelings for her children. David's mother ended up starving him, forcing him to drink ammonia, stabbing him in the stomach, and burning him on the stove. Where was his father? Was he part of it? He might as well be because he did nothing but watch as his wife did this to his son. How can a mother do this to her child? David's mother took her frustration and psychotic behavior out on him when alcohol took its toll. David eventually moved out of that home and into foster care, but that wasn't the end of his mother's abuse. The abuse just passed on to David's brother when he was entered into the system. Don't think about what happened to David, it's in the past for him now. Just remember that David was a child of only four years old and had not had a ray of sunshine in his life, now imagine this happening to other children. What effect will this abuse have on their self-awareness? Sexual abuse/rape. “Sexual abuse describes any incident where an adult engages a child in a sexual act or exposes the child to inappropriate sexual behavior or materials” When women across Australia were surveyed to see how many have been victims of sexual abuse , more than a third of women in Australia have been victims. The limbic system is 50% more sensitive than it should be after suffering sexual abuse, the same goes for victims of sexual abuse.