Consequences of Stress on Children’s Development

Children, like adults, deal with stress in different ways.  My child internalizes her stress.  She was very close to my mom and when my mom passed away suddenly she was devastated.  She didn't want to be left alone and she would not go to the bathroom alone.  When we took her to the doctor he said that she had so much "bm" in her that it was making her sick. 

I grew up in a home where my uncle was abusive to the women that he dated.  He was always angry and violent.  He never talked just yelled.  I say women that he abused and wondered why they put up with such a man.  Children in these situations often retreat within themselves and they often expect violence or react in violent ways.  I can't imagine my children being in that type of situation and shutter when I hear about those situations on tv.  I pray that women are strong and will leave situations like that but the reality is that you hear of more and more husbands and boyfriends committing violent acts on women and killing them now more than ever.  In most cases there are children around. 

It's up to us as a community not to look the other way but to make sure to report situations like these and make sure that we follow through when we hear or see of anything that doesn't seem right.

I looked into the children of Hurricane Katrina.  I wanted to know how they dealt with such a disastrous situation.  What I read was that for the most part children are resilient and that they bounced back without long term psychological issues.  The children saw hope when their schools were rebuilt and they leaned upon the support system that they had around them.  These children had (for the most part) already been living in low income situations and this was just the one thing that could push them and their adult family members over the edge.  Although there were many situations that the children became depressed and had to live off of little or no sleep, for the most part they did better than anyone could have expected.

I don’t know how anyone, especially a child, could go through such a traumatic situation and then be expected to return into a “normal” way of life.  For most of them it is still not normal because they are still displaced and looking for a new home.  I just praise those that are helping and those that can be there for these children in an emotional way.  They need all the love and care they can get.

References:

Effects on Children from Hurricane Katrina. Retreived: Sept. 27, 2011.

            www.disabled-world.com/health/pediatric/katrina.php.  July 15, 2010.

Breastfeeding

Breastfeeding in Africa

I breastfed both of my children.  I decided that this was the best way for them to get nutrition and it was a great bonding time.  I must admit there were times when I didn’t want to expose myself in public or when I needed to be away from my children for more than two hours and couldn’t hurry back to feed them that it became harder to do.  My oldest child would not take a bottle.  Even after trying different bottles and allowing her to go hungry for awhile it didn’t work.  Breastfeeding was the only option.  Even beyond that… I wanted to make sure that they had all the care that my body could provide.  It was worth the sacrifice.

The women in Africa and Asia breastfeed because it is a normal way of life for them.  They are not embarrassed to feed their children in public.  In South Africa women will no longer have the option of formula for their children (allAfrica.com.  Retrieved: Sept. 14, 2011).  Their only option will be to breastfeed.  Although, I don’t agree with the fact that you should be forced to do this I do think that if the woman is healthy then this is best for the child. 

There are cultures who don’t believe in breastfeeding in public because of their religion.  In Iran women are taught to stay covered so breastfeeding in public places is not accepted (Breastfeeding in public…Retreived: Sept.14, 2011).

Women should do what they are comfortable with and what feels right to them.  In the future I will look at a persons’ history and see if this is something that they might be willing to embrace before I encourage breastfeeding.  I can offer resources that might help them make better educated decisions.

References:

  allAfrica.com: South Africa: Green Light for Breastfeeding Only

allafrica.com/stories/201108241403.html.  Retrieved: Sept. 14, 2011.

Breastfeeding in public around the world in different countries: Asia ...

www.007b.com/public-breastfeeding-world.php.  Retrieved: Sept. 14, 2011.

Birthing conditions in Africa

In Africa there are many women that suffer or die while in child birth.  They do not have the proper medical care that they need to carry and deliver babies full term without incident.  They are also living in poor a condition which further increases the risks of child birth. 

There is one situation there that is unbelievable to hear about.  A fistula is a condition where the baby is lodged in the woman’s birth canal.  If the baby is not removed the baby and mom could die.  There have been situations where the woman was walking around with the baby literally hanging out of her.  There aren’t enough doctors to care for the people that are there.  There is a medical procedure that could be done but not enough care to have it done.

When I had my son (which was my second child) I was in a high risk situation.  I was 5 months pregnant and my mother had a two heart attacks and a stroke within the matter of 3 weeks.  I am the only child and the burden of care fell on me.  I had great family support but trying to decided how to care for her and what steps needed to be taken was great.  She later went into a state where she had no brain activity for a year.  I delivered my child and 4 months later she passed away.

Everyone was so afraid of me having trauma while I was pregnant.  I was blessed and had a great husband, family support, and great doctors.  They monitored me and the baby closely.  I had my son without incident but the women in Africa weren’t as lucky. 

The difference between our situations is that they are in a live of such poverty and despair and I am in a country that has great health care.  I know that everyone doesn’t receive the care that they should here but hopefully that will change soon.  Those ladies deserve the same quality of life that we have here and it makes me sad that they have to suffer so much in their country.

The mental damage that it must do to those women is unfair.  We are learning about different ways to protect our bodies and our babies.  It should be that all women have access to the same care.  Children that are born in those conditions have to suffer mentally and physically.  They don't have access to food, water, shelter, or education.  This is such an awful way to live.

References:

SHARON LaFRANIERE .  Nightmare for African Women: Birthing Injury and Little Help.   Published: September 28, 2005.  Retrieved:  Sept. 9, 2011.