The Lasting Scars of Sex Trafficking: An Exploration of the Long-Term Psychological and Physical Effects of Trafficking

Undergraduate Review Volume 19 Article 16 2025 The Lasting Scars of Sex Trafficking: An Exploration of the LongTerm Psychological and Physical Effects of Trafficking Norda Lino-Kelly Follow this and additional works at: https://vc.bridgew.edu/undergrad_rev Recommended Citation Lino-Kelly, Norda (2025). The Lasting Scars of Sex Trafficking: An Exploration of the Long-Term Psychological and Physical Effects of Trafficking. Undergraduate Review, 19, 163-173. Available at: https://vc.bridgew.edu/undergrad_rev/vol19/iss1/16 This item is available as part of Virtual Commons, the open-access institutional repository of Bridgewater State University, Bridgewater, Massachusetts. Copyright © 2025 Norda Lino-Kelly COLLEGE OF HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES The Lasting Scars of Sex Trafficking: An Exploration of the Long-Term Psychological and Physical Effects of Trafficking Norda Lino-Kelly Abstract This article explores the long-term physical and psychological effects of sex trafficking on survivors. Using a qualitative research approach based on the feminization of poverty and life course theories, and through a lengthy interview with an activist and survivor, the study demonstrates the long-term effects of sex trafficking on physical health, mental health, and access to healthcare. The main takeaways call attention to PTSD and other major mental health issues, chronic health conditions, and financial barriers that survivors have while trying to access healthcare. The study emphasizes the necessity of improved healthcare procedures, the significance of trauma-informed care, and the need to change policies to guarantee survivor-centered support. Furthermore, this research urges a more empathetic, justice-focused, and holistic approach to trafficking survivors' healing and reintegration. Introduction Millions of people, women, men, and children are victims of human trafficking each year. Many individuals lose their freedom, are violently assaulted, and are made to endure unspeakable suffering. Hooked in a vicious circle of exploitation, they frequently lose their identities, are intimidated into silence, and have little chance of escaping. Human trafficking is a widespread worldwide issue that affects people from all walks of life and in all places. Human trafficking is defined as “a crime that involves compelling or coercing a person to provide labor or services, or to engage in commercial sex acts. The coercion can be subtle or overt, physical or psychological. Exploitation of a minor for commercial sex is human trafficking, regardless of whether any form of force, fraud, or coercion was used” (What Is Human Trafficking, 2023). Human trafficking comes in many forms, each objectively formed to target vulnerable people in various ways. A commonly known form of human trafficking is labor trafficking, also known as forced labor. Labor trafficking is “when individuals are compelled against their will to provide work or service through the use of force, fraud, or coercion” (Our Rescue, 2024). In addition to sex and labor trafficking, another form of exploitation that is less common is organ trafficking, which is sometimes known as organ harvesting. Organ trafficking “describes a range of illicit activities regarding organ transplants. This includes removing organs illegally and selling or transplanting those organs through the black market, or ‘red market,’ as it’s called sometimes when regarding body parts” (Cornell, 2024). Additionally, there is another extremely unsettling type of exploitation that goes beyond these types and generally affects the most BRIDGEWATER STATE UNIVERSITY | 163 COLLEGE OF HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES vulnerable people, which are children: “Child trafficking involves the use of children for the purpose of exploitation in various ways. It is a serious crime and a severe violation of human rights” (Explainer: Understanding Child Trafficking, n.d.). Given that these types of trafficking are the most well-known, they only make up a small portion of the larger problem of human trafficking. The most commonly known is sex trafficking; along with other forms of sexual exploitation, sex trafficking is “forcing an individual to engage in commercial sex acts such as prostitution or the production of pornography” (Our Rescue, 2024). Human rights are severely violated by sex trafficking, depriving victims of autonomy in their bodies and causing them severe psychological and physical suffering. Many survivors suffer from sexually transmitted diseases, substance abuse, reproductive issues, and trauma-induced mental illnesses. Many survivors find it difficult to receive proper medical care because of financial instability and legal barriers. It is crucial to acknowledge the long-term health effects of sex trafficking to improve policies, strengthen support networks for survivors, and address broader societal injustices that make people more vulnerable to exploitation. This paper will address the effects of the sexual exploitation of women in the United States due to sex trafficking and the long-term psychological and physical suffering it has caused. Better health care training and policy changes can only assist survivors of human trafficking. Literature Review Health Consequences of Sex Trafficking A review of literature reveals how reproductive and gynecological health of survivors of sex trafficking is severely and permanently impacted. Given ongoing sexual exploitation, abuse, and limited access to healthcare, survivors commonly battle serious health issues. Studies investigate these problems, highlighting various sexual health conditions that trafficked women face. This research presents an interview of multiple incarcerated 164 | THE UNDERGRADUATE REVIEW 2025 women in Rikers Island Jail who were trafficked, allowing them to speak about their sexual health experience while being trafficked and the lasting effects of their health due to being trafficked. Studying the experiences of survivors explores both the psychological and physical consequences of sex trafficking. Ravi [2017] shares a study of women’s experiences after being trafficked and the lasting health conditions that they now face. Many of these women share experiences of forced abortions, infectious diseases, and violence perpetrated by traffickers and buyers, along with their healthcare experiences. “Some participants stated that healthcare access was limited by their traffickers due to concern that survivors would attempt to run away from or report the trafficker if allowed to seek care” (Ravi, 410-412). Healthcare access was very limited to these women, and along with prolonging treatment for life-threatening illnesses, survivors’ mental health would then be affected. One of the participants in the study shares her experience dealing with a pimp: “[T]hat’s my first STD*– I caught an STD from a pimp… that was his choice not to use a condom. He told me that I couldn’t use a condom with h (...truncated)