April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month. Christy Beck, from Beck Psychotherapy in State College, shares some tips to help prevent child abuse.

• Teach children the difference between touches that are “okay” and “not okay”.
• Empower children to make decisions about their body and encouraging them to say “no” when they don’t want to be touched, even in nonsexual ways.
• Teach children the differences between good secrets (like birthday surprises) and secrets that make them feels uncomfortable or unsafe.
• Most importantly, if your child tells you someone has abused them, believe them!
• Stay calm, listen carefully, and never blame the child. Thank them for telling you and report the abuse.

Some information taken from childwelfare.gov.

Beck Psychotherapy is located at 103 East Beaver Ave. Suite #2 in State College, and you can call them at (814) 409-7744. Calls are answered 24 hours a day, seven days a week.