Therapy enables children who have been abused to develop a healthy self-image, learn to trust again, and identify ways to protect themselves from further victimization. Specially trained and licensed therapists work with child victims on complex issues stemming from their abuse such as shame, embarrassment, safety and self-esteem. Child abuse victims enrolled in the therapy program receive individual, group, play, art, and animal assisted therapy individualized toward their particular needs.

Therapy Program activities include:

Client Experiences

Art Therapy: Art therapy encourages the child victims to express themselves through painting, drawing, sculpting, and other creative mediums.

Elizabeth's Story
Elizabeth was 10 years old when she first came to the Dallas Children's Advocacy Center. After years of sexual abuse by her father, she was extremely depressed, suicidal, anxious, and timid. Near the completion of therapy, Elizabeth painted the image of a butterfly. The left half of the butterfly represents Elizabeth's self-image before she began the healing process. The colors are gray and dreary, and the wing is broken. The right half of the butterfly shows Elizabeth after completion of therapy services. The bright blue background and vibrant orange wing depicts Elizabeth's hope for her future. Through therapy, Elizabeth has faced her fears by conquering her traumatic past and has grown into a confident and self-assured young woman with a great future ahead of her.

Animal Assisted Therapy: Our Animal Assisted Therapy Program uses specially trained therapy dogs to reach some of our most challenging clients. For more information about this program go to http://www.dcacdogs.org. 

Sophie's Story
Sophie, a nine year old girl, was removed from her parents' custody after her brother was murdered. In the beginning, she spent most of her therapy sessions in tears or facing the wall. Her therapist invited Molly, a DCAC therapy dog, to join the sessions with hopes that Sophie could find comfort and begin to process the tragedy that had occurred. During her first session with Molly, Sophie was told about the dog's history which is very similar to her own. Molly was adopted by her handler after an abusive past, and Molly's brother also died due to neglect. A special connection between the small girl and the dog formed causing an obvious breakthrough for Sophie. This connection was the first step to hope and healing for Sophie. Although she was still reluctant to share her feelings, she seemed to find comfort in knowing she was not alone. She was able to relate to Molly when she could not relate to the rest of us.