Childhood should bring favorable memories to an individual. Unfortunately, many children experience much turbulence in their early years of development. Most of the turmoil they face, originates from their families. A child deserves a normal and a healthy family life and parents have the greatest role to play in this regard. But parental discord and habits like alcoholism and drug abuse can cause adverse effects on a child's psychology.
When children grow up in an atmosphere which supports substance abuse and alcoholism of their parents, they develop certain problems that last for the lifetime. Depression, anxiety, lack of confidence and low self esteem are a few problems to be named. Trusted adults such as relatives, friends, teachers, coaches or school nurses can help the children of substance abusers to feel less discomfort in the midst of "confusing" actions of their parents. These children need an additional network of support.
In a family where parents resort to alcoholism or substance abuse, children experience a daily environment of inconsistency, chaos, fear, abandonment, denial and either real or potential violence. Survival then becomes a full-time job to them! Emotions become constricted and children have no expectation from their family life. A study conducted by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism reported that children from alcoholic families experience higher levels of depression and anxiety and exhibit more symptoms of generalized stress (i.e. low self-esteem) than do children from nonalcoholic families.
A study in Sweden followed alcohol use in twins who were adopted and reared apart. The incidence of alcoholism was slightly higher among people who were exposed to alcoholism only through their adoptive families. However, it was dramatically higher among the twins whose biological fathers were alcoholics, regardless of the presence of alcoholism in their adoptive families.
Effects on the Children of Alcoholic Parents
- Alcoholism affects the entire family. Children living with a non-recovering alcoholic score, fall far short on measures of family cohesion, intellectual-cultural orientation, active-recreational orientation and independence. They usually experience higher levels of conflict within the family. It can contribute to stress in the whole family. These children might not grow up healthily, especially when it comes to the mental wellness of the child.
- Children of alcoholics are 4 times more likely to get this addiction than the children of the non-alcoholics.
- Children's perceptions of parental drinking quantity and circumstances appear to influence their own drinking frequency.
- Parental alcoholism and other drug dependencies have an impact upon children's early learning about alcohol and other drugs.
- It has been found that families with an alcoholic parent displayed more negative family interaction during problem-solving discussions than in non-alcoholic families.
- Based on some clinical observations, it has been found out that child abuse is the outcome of the type of relationship existing between the alcoholic parents and their children.
- Children of alcoholics score lower on tests measuring verbal ability. Their ability to express themselves may be impaired, which can impede their school performance, peer relationships, ability to develop and sustain intimate relationships. In the long run, it can hamper their performance in job interviews.
- Children of alcoholics often have difficulties in school. Poor reasoning skills, language skills and lack of stimulation are found in those children. They may have difficulty bonding with the teachers, other students and the school; they may experience anxiety related to performance or they may feel afraid of failure.
- Children with alcoholic parents may have great difficulty with abstract concepts and conceptual reasoning. Abstraction and conceptual reasoning play an important role in problem solving, whether the problems are academic or are related to the real life.
Behavioral Patterns Commonly Observed by Children of Alcoholic Parents
- These children show a tendency to be impulsive.
- They show two extreme behaviors. They are either very responsible or super irresponsible.
- Lack of self discipline is commonly observed in these children.
- They show a tendency to suffer from chronic anxiety.
- They face difficulty with emotional relationships.
- They turn into compulsive liars.
- They tend to express fear and lack of trust in others.
How can You Help Children Cope up with a Difficult Childhood?
- Early intervention of alcoholic parents is very essential in order to save children from suffering from traumatic conditions and the long term effects.
- Children constantly look for a safe atmosphere where they can open up and share their feelings with confidence. We as caretakers or other relatives of the family should ensure the availability of such an atmosphere for the children to allow them to express their feelings.
- Help them learn how to have fun, because there is a possibility that after staying in such a chaotic environment the child may just have forgotten what fun is.
- Since parents play the most important role in a child's well-being and development, they should come out in the open and accept the truth about their alcoholism in order to facilitate the process of intervention.
- Most of the therapists suggest intervention and self-help programs such as AI-Anon i.e. International organizations jointly known as Al-Anon Family Groups with a membership of over half a million men, women and teens, providing a twelve-step program of recovery for the friends and family members of alcoholics.
- Counseling from a good psychiatrist is also sometimes recommended for these children. Child and adolescent psychiatrists can diagnose and treat problems in children of alcoholics. They can also help the child to understand that they are not responsible for the drinking problems of their parents. The treatment program may include group therapy with other youngsters and this approach reduces the feeling of isolation for being a child of an alcoholic. The child and adolescent psychiatrist will often work with the entire family, particularly when the alcoholic parent has stopped drinking, to help them develop healthier ways of relating to one another.
Getting a safer and a healthier childhood is the right of every child. It is the responsibility of the parents and the other family members to provide a favorable and a peaceful atmosphere to them so as to facilitate their growth, well-being and overall development.
