Stop Child Abuse Now (SCAN) - 2688

Tonight's special guest is Benjamin Duveneck from Pewaukee, Wisconson, who was introduced to sexual life through one of his older brothers. "I was separated from my brothers and parents, put into foster care at the age of 2 because of abuse and neglect," he explains. "I would go back and forth between my biological mom and foster mom and at the age of 6-8 is when my eldest brother started exposing me to himself and masturbation. Not to mention my mom would have various partners she would frequently have sex with openly."All of this wasn't easy. "I believe as a result hidden depression and anxiety were just symptoms of the underlying issue of feeling not good enough, less than, guilt and shame and unresolved grief for lost time. I battled sharing my heart and authentic experience with others and masking the pain because it would otherwise become such a distraction that I would feel I couldn't maintain my status or be perceived as normal. It was very deep." He bounced around a lot. "I went to 3 different high schools, asked to leave all of them, and 5 different colleges, therapy, counseling, a therapeutic boarding school and even military school. I consider myself a survivor, overcomer and victorious despite challenges. I am a lifelong learner, continuing to stay immersed in positive transformation to achieve success in every area of life. I have a personal life coach, support groups and I am constantly working to master what I learn and share it with others." Things are looking up. "I currently feel joy, hope, tremendous gratitude (which is authentically what I felt all along, but never seemed to be able to share with others because it would hit me so hard with grief) I feel free, and courageous, and a lot happier."