Dr. Amy Saltzman is a Physician, Mindfulness Coach, Author, former Stanford gymnast, and abuse survivor of covert emotional abuse who is passionate about creating protective prevention programs and establishing comprehensive national policies to end abuse in sports and other community programs. Because of Dr. Amy’s painful past, she’s made it her mission to protect athletes from abuse. Her program, “Spot a Spider”, helps children, teens, and young adults learn about the awful ways a predator can prey on a victim. It not only teaches them to spot an abuser but also shows them how to protect themselves from it. In this episode, Dr. Amy shares some of the ‘innocent’ signs an abuser might use to groom their young victim.
Key Takeaways
- What are the four types of abuse?
- The hardest form of abuse to spot is emotional abuse.
- A sneaky spider or sneaky abuse makes the child feel like they’re special, at first.
- How do you know if your child is being groomed?
- Are you tolerating behaviors from a coach that you wouldn’t otherwise tolerate from a teacher in a classroom?
- Abuse can be subtle and sneaky.
- What are some ground rules parents should have to protect their children?
- Have a conversation with your child before anything happens.
- What can parents do to make sure the school has hired a safe teacher?
- Unfortunately, the sex offender list is incomplete.
“The data shows that emotional abuse is as harmful or more harmful than physical or sexual abuse.”
“An abuser is going to see if you’re going to hold your ground and stand up for what’s true for you or are you going to lie and let them erode what you know is true over time.”
“It’s the almost invisible abuse that’s the cruelest.”
