Documente Academic
Documente Profesional
Documente Cultură
ADDICTED PARENTS
Kristin Caroza, Tonya DeDera, Edith Feld,
Davis Legaspi-David, Jared Hansen, Leslie
Ramos, & Sara Silverberg
Breaking Night
Liz Murray grew up in the Bronx with
her older sister and two drug
addicted parents
Her need to care for her parents, lack
of supervision and love of the streets
as a young child superseded her
desire to attend school, eventually
leading to homelessness
While living on the streets it became
clear to Liz that only she was in
control of her own future and needed
to make changes, if she wanted to
survive
While still homeless, Liz obtained her
(Murray, 2010
Definitions
Children of substance abusers are a population without a clear
definition
Children of Addicts/Children of Substance Abusers is any child
whose parent (or parental caregiver) uses alcohol or other drugs in
such a way that is causes problems in the childs life
The parent does not have to still be actively drinking or using for the
child to continue to feel the impact of the abuse
Both have serious consequences for children who live in homes where
parents are involved with drugs and/or alcohol
Statistics
More than 28 million Americans are children of alcoholics
More than 8 million children live with at least one parent addicted to
alcohol or drugs
Felt neglected
Abused: Physically and sexually
Children with addicted parents are 3 times more likely to be abused, and
4 times more likely to be neglected when compared to peers
Sociocultural
Role Reversal
Role Confusion
(Kroll, 2004)
Socioeconomic
Youth from lower SES families are more likely to smoke
Youth from higher SES families are prone to alcohol use, heavy
episodic drinking, and marijuana use
Adults from higher occupational status are associated with more
alcohol and substance use disorders
Erratic attendance
Repeating a grade
Truancy
Stress from conflicts at home
Suspension
Long-Term Consequences
The concentration of drug addiction, criminal activity, and HIV/AIDS
in urban low-income communities may constitute a stressful
environment for adolescents, and increase their likelihood of
engaging in substance use
Ecological factors, such as drug trafficking, gangs and less
neighborhood cohesion, may impact adolescents through a lack of
community norms against drug use or the absence of informal
social controls
Children growing up with substance abuse parents, include
increased mortality, self-destructive behaviors, which include
suicide or drug addiction
(Brook et al.,
Long-Term Consequences
Adolescents who live in underserved, low-income environments with
high levels of drug use, drug trafficking, and gang activity, are at
increased risk of psychological maladjustment and problem
behaviors, including substance abuse (Brook et al., 2008)
I always told myself I would do better than my parents. It
wasnt until I broke my foot in 2007 that I discovered the
euphoric effects of vicodin and I started stealing vicodin from
my grandpa. My lower self confidence in school heightened
my use exponentially. It was my way out! It relieved my
stress and made me feel extremely confident. No longer could
I drink just one drink or take just one hit (R. M., personal communication, February
15, 2016).
Lifestyle Choices
Instead, what I was beginning to understand was that
however things unfolded from here on, whatever the next
chapter was, my life could never be the sum of one
circumstance. It would be determined as it had always
been, by my willingness to put one foot in front of the other,
moving forward, come what may (p. 191).
Sleeping in a hallway around Bedford Park later that week,
I took out my blank transcripts and filled in the grades I
wanted, making neat little columns of As. If I could picture
it If I could take out these transcripts and look at them
then it was almost as if the As had already happened. Day
by day, I was catching up with what was already real. My
(Murray,
Population: Common
Characteristics
Values
Loyalty
Security
Predictability
Comfort
Beliefs
Guilt
Shame
Blame
Mistrust
Fear
Customary Practices
Family life
characterized by
chaos and
unpredictability
Role Reversal
Secrecy and Denial
Stress
Confusion
Ambivalence
Occupational Injustice
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Occupational
Occupational
Occupational
Occupational
Occupational
apartheid
deprivation
marginalization
alienation
imbalance
Occupational Apartheid
I was not going back into the system. But being on the
streets was not working out either. I would go pack bags
for tips again, but child labor laws had become more
strictly enforced over the last few years (p. 119).
(Murray,
Occupational Deprivation
A couple nights later when our stomachs finally ached
from hunger Lisa and I split a tube of toothpaste and a
Cherry-flavored ChapStick when we got hungry (p. 51).
(Murray, 2010
Occupational Marginalization
Professional adults had credibility and were my standard
for deciding what was legitimate or not, including myself.
Previously, when teachers like Ms. Nedgrin saw me as a
victim - despite her good intentions - thats what I
believed about myself, too (p. 286).
(Murray, 2010
Occupational Alienation
As a child, I hated Mothers and Fathers day! I hated
having to answer the question: Why do you live with your
grandparents? I hated feeling like I was handicapped (R. M.,
personal communication, February 15, 2016).
Occupational Imbalance
I got through my fathers addiction by just being at
school realizing that if I was just a deadbeat, I would be
at my fathers house. I overloaded myself with a full AP
class load and got tons of extracurricular activities so I
didnt have to be home. Where like if I couldnt fix my
home situation for me, at least I can control my school
situation (Q. N., personal communication, February 12, 2016).
Occupational Engagement
Academic and cognitive functioning
Lower GPA
Increased grade retention
Failure to pursue secondary education
Weaker performance in reading, spelling, and math during early
and middle childhood compared to peers
Teach
Express empathy
Advise action
Reach agreement
Conspiracy of Silence
Family coping mechanism of silence
Once you tell an adult they start inspecting your family and
theyre gonna report it. And I felt that I was never safe, like
what happens if I tell an adult and then my father will be taken
away from me (Q. N., personal communication, February 12, 2016).
(Kroll,
Retrieved from
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1023/
A%3A1020768011128#page-1
(Peleg-Oren, 2002
Local Resources
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-TALK (8255)
Addiction Helpline: 1-877-478-5973
National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-SAFE
National Domestic Violence Hotline (TDD): 1-800-787-3224
National Youth Crisis Hotline: 1-800-448-4663
NDMDA Depression Hotline Support Group: 1-800-826-3632
Poison Control Any Kind of Substance: 1-800-222-1222
References
Adger, H. Blondell, R., Cooney, J., Finch, J., Graham, A. (n.d.) Helping children and adolescents in families
affected by substance abuse. Retrieved from http://www.nacoa.org/pdfs/guide%20for%20health.pdf
American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress (n.d.) Effects of parental substance abuse on children and
families. Retrieved from http://www.aaets.org/article230.htm
Brook, D. W., Brook, J. S., Rubenstone, E., Zhang, C., Castro, F. G., & Tiburcio, N. (2008). Risk factors for
distress in the adolescent children of HIV-positive and HIV-negative drug-abusing fathers. AIDS care,
20(1), 93-100. doi: 10.1080/09540120701426557
Drug Rehab. (n.d.). Parental drug addiction and its destructive impact on children. Retrieved from
http://www.drugrehab.us/news//parental-drug-addiction-children/
Durocher, E., Gibson, B. E., & Rappolt, S. (2014). Occupational justice: A conceptual review. Journal of
Occupational Science, 21(4), 418-430. doi: 10.1080/14427591.2013.775692
Hser, Y. I., Evans, E., Li, L., Metchik-Gaddis, A., & Messina, N. (2013). Children of treated substance-aabusing
mothers: A 10-year prospective study. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 19(2), 217-232 16p.
doi:10.1177/1359104513486999
References Cont.
Holland Christian Psych. (2013, December 1). Substance Abuse Effects on Children. [Video File].
Kroll, B. (2004). Living with an elephant: growing up with parental substance misuse. Child & Family
Social Work, 9(2), 129-140. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2206.2004.00325.x
Manly, J. T., Oshri, A., Lynch, M., Herzog, M., & Wortel, S. (2013). Child neglect and the development of
externalizing behavior problems associations with maternal drug dependence and neighborhood
crime. Child Maltreatment,18(1), 17-29. doi: 10.1177/1077559512464119
Martin, L. M., Smith, M., Rogers, J., Wallen, T., & Boisvert, R. (2011). Mothers in recovery: An
occupational perspective. Occupational Therapy International, 18(3), 152-161 10p.
doi:10.1002/oti.318
Murray, L. (2010). Breaking Night. New York, NY: Hyperion
Nevada Partnership for Homeless Youth. (2015). Problem with youth homelessness. Retrieved from
http://www.nphy.org/whatwe-do/problem-of-youth-homelessness/
Peleg-Oren, N. (2002). Group intervention for children of drug-addicted parents--using expressive
techniques. Clinical Social Work Journal, 30(4), 403-418. doi: 10.1023/A:1020768011128
References Cont.
Patrick, M. E., Wightman, P., Schoeni, R. F., & Schulenberg, J. E. (2012). Socioeconomic status and substance
use among young adults: a comparison across constructs and drugs. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and
Drugs, 73(5), 772-782. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.15288/jsad.2012.73.772
Regional ATTC Products & Resources. (n.d.). Substance abuse awareness activity: Time of truth. Retrieved
from http://www.attcnetwork.org/regcenters/productdetails.asp?prodID=543&rcID=5
Solis, J. M., Shadur, J. M., Burns, A. R., & Hussong, A. M. (2012). Understanding the diverse needs of children
whose parents abuse substances. Current drug abuse reviews, 5(2), 135. doi:
10.2174/1874473711205020135
Group Activity
Adapted from: Substance Abuse Awareness Activity: Time of Truth
In this activity, we are going to look at the story of Liz Murray from
Breaking Night. We are asking that you put yourself in the position
of a child living with a substance abusive parent.
With your provided cards write down the following:
Write or
Write or
security
Write or
Write or
Write or
Discussion