Awareness Doesn’t Create Fear — Silence Does

During one of my workshops, a mother named Layla felt uncomfortable with everything she heard. She was afraid that talking would make her daughter scared of people. But she decided to begin with just one sentence she memorized:

“If someone makes you uncomfortable, even just a little, you can walk away and tell me. I will always listen.”

Two months later, at a toy store, a 16-year-old boy tried to force a kiss on her 10-year-old girl. Instead of freezing, the girl stepped back, ran to her mother, and said out loud — “That wasn’t okay.”Her mother later told me through tears:

“It wasn’t fear I saw in her — it was power.”

For many adults, the idea of discussing body safety with children feels like stepping onto thin ice — uncertain, risky, or overwhelming. Parents worry they might “plant ideas” or “ruin innocence.” But in reality, the world does not wait for a child to be ready. Conversations children overhear at school, images that flash across screens, and interactions during activities are already shaping how children interpret their bodies and their boundaries. Silence does not protect innocence — it only removes understanding.

Children who grow up without language for body boundaries do not become shielded — they become silent when something feels wrong. The absence of conversation leaves them without tools.

Awareness is like turning on a light before entering a room — it doesn’t change the room; it only lets you move safely inside it. We prepare children for fire with drills. We prepare for the weather with jackets. But many adults hesitate to prepare children for body safety because they fear the topic itself. It is time to change that.

What the Numbers Say — 2024–2025

Research shows that prevention education does not increase anxiety — it increases confidence:

• Children who receive body-safety education are 3× more likely to disclose early (Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 2024)

• They are 50% less likely to freeze under threat (Darkness to Light Outcomes Review)

• 1 in 5 teens receive unwanted sexual messages online (Pew Research, 2024)

• 94% of teens report being unsupervised on devices at least once a day (Common Sense Media, 2025)

Fear comes from not knowing — not from knowing.

Why Awareness Matters

Parents often ask: “Won’t talking about abuse scare them?”Here is the truth: Children who don’t know what abuse is think anything confusing is their fault. Children who do know what abuse is think: “I can tell. This is wrong.”

Education gives children permission — permission to name what feels uncomfortable and permission to reach for an adult.

This Week

Choose 1–2 small steps:

1️⃣ Teach one script. Say to your child today —

“Your body belongs to you. No one is allowed to touch it without permission — not even someone you know.”

2️⃣ Practice a “big voice” in a safe moment. Make it a game: stand tall, hands on hips, say: “STOP!” like a superhero. Children must practice strength before they need it.

3️⃣ Ask a soft question at bedtime

“Did anything today make you feel weird, even a tiny bit?”

4️⃣ Affirm confidence over compliance. Praise when they speak up — even if what they said was inconvenient.

“Help me raise a child who knows their voice has value.”