Consequences of Stress on Children's Development

The stressor that I chose was the effects of war on children’s development.  Here’s a story I would like to share with you . . .  

My best friend (Linda) was stressed when her father was serving in the war.  Linda was very dependent on the care, empathy and attention that her father gave her.  Her attachments were disrupted when her father was drafted to serve as a solider.  When we were in the second grade, her mom came to the school around ten o’clock to take her home.  With Linda being my best friend, as soon as I made it home, I asked my mom to call her mom to see why she came to the school to pickup Linda early.  I felt that something was badly wrong.  When mom called, Linda’s mom told her the news, that her husband had been killed.  As I can remember, I started to cry and so did my mom.  We rushed over to Linda’s house to be with them.  From that day forward, Linda was never the same.  Linda experienced anxiety, and in some cases panic when she would think about her father.  When I would spend the night with her, she would have nightmares and could not sleep soundly. She would also complain of headaches and stomachaches daily.     

I chose the region of Afghanistan to focus on the effects of war on children. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is high due to family violence caused by high levels of stress stemming from the war.  Other issues stemming from war is  displacement, lack of food, interruption of school, intrusive thoughts, flashbacks, nightmares, avoidance behaviors, mental disorders and increased levels of arousal.  More common side affects of PTSD include guilt, depression, anxiety, poor appetite, difficulty concentrating, difficulty relaxing, aggressive outbursts, poor interactions, fear of darkness, and strong effect on emotional development.  I also read that there are 35,000 street children due to hidden mines, 7 out of 10 children have lost parents and 72% have lost relatives since the war began (Dev Psychopathol. 2001).  I found much more information on bio-behavior consequences of war on children’s mental health, growth and development at http://www.inernetandpsychiatry.com/.  

As I furthered my research, I found several groups that help to minimize harm to children. 

Ø       The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is the most widely ratified human rights treaty and obliges States to take positive measures to ensure the protection of children’s rights both in peace and in war.

Ø       Peacemakers must buffer children from the potentially negative consequences of the peace process while respecting their evolving capacities and their right to guided participation.

Ø       Save the Children is an internationally active Non-Governmental Organization that enforces children's rights, provides relief and helps support children in developing countries.  It was established in the United Kingdom in 1919 in order to improve the lives of children through better education, health care, and economic opportunities, as well as providing emergency aid in natural disasters, war, and other conflicts.

There is no doubt that the war has a tremendous impact on the biosocial, cognitive and psychosocial development of the children, their attitudes toward society, their relationship with others and their outlook on life in general.  A war affects children in so many different ways.  To me, I now realize that the greatest effect that war has on a child is when their father or mother are killed. 

Here’s a quote that I thought you all would enjoy . . .

“The best way to protect children from wars is to prevent them from happening in the first place”
-- Free The Children

References:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Save_the_Children

http://www.ecdgroup.com/docs/lib_005823920.pdf

http://medind.nic.in/maa/t08/i1/maat08i1p65.pdf

http://www.law.harvard.edu/students/orgs/hrj/iss12/cohn.shtml

Nutrition/Malnutrition

I chose nutrition/malnutrition because proper nourishment is the key to learning.  This is important to know when dealing with children.  Children need to have proper nutrition so they can focus on education and other issues.  In the beginning of my research I was interested in access to healthy water, but as I read articles I found that all the topics were interrelated.   In the field of Early Childhood, it is very important to know that proper nourishment is needed for the physical, social and mental development for our children.

According to the World Health Organization, malnutrition is by far the biggest contributor to child mortality.  Underweight births cause 2.2 million child deaths a year. Poor or non-existent breastfeeding causes another 1.4 million. Other deficiencies, such as lack of vitamin A or zinc, for example, account for 1 million.  Malnutrition in the first two years is irreversible.  Malnourished children grow up with worse health and lower educational achievements.

I also found out that in India, 2.1 million Indian children die before reaching the age of 5 every year – four every minute - mostly from preventable illnesses such as diarrhea, typhoid, malaria, measles and pneumonia due to malnutrition. Every day, 1,000 Indian children die because of diarrhea alone. Malnutrition and the lack of safe water and sanitation contribute to half of all these children’s deaths.

I have learned that there are many factors that impact children’s development all over the world and they all need to be addressed.  Malnourishment not only stunts the physical development but also hinders the learning and cognitive process which leads to the educational, social and
economic development. Children have the right to a caring, protective environment and to nutritious food and basic health care to protect them from illness and promote growth and development.  In my readings this week I have to focus on the health of the children.  I am definitely more aware of the boarder span of public health issues than I was before I did my research. 

Here’s a quote that I thought was very interesting. . .

"We are guilty of many errors and many faults, but our worst crime is abandoning the children, neglecting the foundation of life. Many of the things we need can wait. The child cannot. Right now is the time his bones are being formed, his blood is being made and his senses are being developed.

To him we cannot answer "Tomorrow". His name is "Today"."
Gabriela Mistral, 1948

Sources:

http://www.articlesbase.com/pregnancy-articles/smart-kids-start-nourishment-from-womb-274804.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Child_mortality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Health_Organization

http://motherchildnutrition.org/

http://nutritionfoundationofindia.res.in/

Childbirth: In Your Life and Around the World

I am writing about the birth of my first son who is 25 years old and was born February 8. I didn't find about I was pregnant with him until I was about 12 weeks pregnant. I only gained 19 lbs, and I remained between the sizes of 8 and 10 throughout my pregnancy. I was due, however, on March 8 but Kevin came a month earlier. I was admitted into the hospital at 6:00a.m. on February 8 and my labor was induced. I was given an epidural.  After being given the epidural, I felt no pain.  By not feeling any pain, when the doctor told me to push, I could not feel my body and did not know what part of my body to push.  That was very strange to me.  I was in labor about 4 hours and Kevin was delivered at 10:05a.m. Kevin weighed 7lbs and 6 ozs and was 21 1/2 inches long. Now he is 5’7 and weighs about 175 lbs.  He played basketball during his High School days.  Because it was an experience of a lifetime and no one could believe because of his weight at birth, how small I was and that I had only gained 19 lbs. My thoughts about birth and the impact on child development is that it is very important to find out as soon as possible if a woman is pregnant or not, because there could be so many complications and finding out early may help to prevent them.

I chose the country of Australia. Many births are done independently or with mid-wives. There have been some publicly funded homebirth available for a small number of women for many years. There is a policy that is being finalized to take mid-wives from public hospitals and place them in home births. The two reasons homebirth are chosen is to avoid what they previously experienced or what might happen with hospital birth and/or to have their baby with care from just one or two midwives, who they trust and know. Other reasons for homebirths maybe being comfortable with home setting, less risk of infection for baby and mom, less risk of unnecessary episiotomy. If hospital transfer is needed, very low caesarean, and visits with midwives are more personal. There are no inductions or epidurals available at home.  Other ways that are okay with moms maybe use of water, showers, massages, aromatherapy and walking. Midwives carry oxygen, suction or bleeding prevention medicine. A midwife may stay up to four hours after the birth, will come back within 12 to 24 hours, will visit daily until mom is ready for less visits and will be released after moms six week postnatal visit. I learned that moms in Australia have a choice of rather having the baby at home or hospital, just like moms did many years ago. There are a lot of differences, where with most deliveries moms are offered something for pain, where with these home births there are no inductions or epidurals. I believe if I was still in the child bearing age, I would like to try a homebirth because there is just so many infections and diseases out in the world, I feel that a homebirth would be more personal and would be a time for parents to enjoy that special moment.

http://www.homebirthaustralia.org/

http://www.bubhub.com.au/info/articles/birth-labour/homebirth_in_australia.shtml