LIFE IN A MADHOUSE: CHILDREN EDITION

Whitney Pierre

Ap Literature

12th Grade
 CITIONS

Carter, Jay. "The contagiousness of verbal abuse." Mothering, Spring 1994, p. 108+. General
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%7CA14710478&it=r&asid=142d980533db2e6092bdd5cd605b8e1f. Accessed 2 Nov. 2017.

"Child And Adolescent Mental Health." Business World, 10 Oct. 2017. Health Reference Center
Academic,
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%7CA508875278&it=r&asid=d270d34f98aa0e053a2c03df6f8eb66f. Accessed 27 Nov. 2017.

"The Little Understood Mental-Health Effects of Racial Trauma." Science of Us, 23 June 2017.
General OneFile,
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%7CA496601007&it=r&asid=112d04a24b6618f4d41e6471edb130ab. Accessed 27 Nov. 2017.

"Violent Children: A Juvenile Justice Perspective." Officer.com, Jan. 2012. General OneFile,
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%7CA290325852&it=r&asid=014287660567ae0cae9cb886c3218acd. Accessed 7 Nov. 2017

Anderson, Robert A. "Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology review and commentary." Townsend

Letter, Apr. 2009, p. 102+. General OneFile,
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%7CA196581580&it=r&asid=d06a909d625eb7b15e9d2d6bcef1c5a2. Accessed 22 Nov. 2017.

Maholmes Valerie, “The Oxford handbook of Poverty and Child Development” May , 2012
Accessed November 7th
 “Mental Health problems affect about 1 in 10 children and young people”(Child And

Adolescent Mental Health). Although this doesn’t seem like many people we have a millions of

children in the world, thousands of children being born. Mental health cases in children are not

rare. One might think that Mental Health consists of only severe cases such as autism, ADHD, or

schizophrenia. These are all on high levels of importance however as are the smaller cases in

mental health such as depression, anxiety, and disorders. These are more frequently seen cases

and less frequently treated cases. There has been many cases of suicide where a teenager has

taken his/her own life because it holds no sentimental value to them. One might view different

cases where mental issues arise for different reasons. Children who go through traumatic

experiences in their day to day life , face issues not only in society due to their standings(i.e

poverty , race) but also mentally causing psychological problems on different scales.

In the year 2017 , societal statuses have changed facing problems that create struggle in

all areas such as providing justice for those experiencing constant discrimination, accepting one

another as equals and filling the gap between success and failure. Although these struggles seem

to only impact those who are wise and active within the community the impact spreads to

younger more gullible ones such as children causing more complex challenges to arise. Children

begin to develop racial trauma within brutal violent environments where the victim relates to

them by race ,"Racial trauma is experiencing psychological symptoms such as anxiety,

hypervigilance to threat, or lack of hopefulness for your future as a result of repeated exposure to

racism or discrimination,"(Meadows-Fernandez). To a child of or relating to the victim , due to

their young minds they develop a block and view the oppressor as superior and label themselves
as incapable of holding such authority. The incapability they develop is the beginning of what

later will arise in a developing child’s life as mental health issues.

Children who develop in environments that implicate racial trauma are normally equally

exposed to economic and financial issues of their surroundings. Many factors are identified in a

community facing poverty , for a child it is being limited to the resources that other children have

a surplus amount of , facing the bullying and inability of being able to succeed. “These factors

are associated with Poverty but also can add additional stress on a rural family life that can

contribute to more chaotic living conditions for young children , including disorganization ,

instability and unpredictability” (King & Maholmes). A child has a young mind it can be either

molded or broken throughout growth and experience. Poverty stunts the formation of growth by

providing all the consequential factors that steer a child into developing poorly and growing up

as a problematic child. The problem does not start with the child more so what they have been

through mentally. This creates building blocks that would later during their growing years of

adolescence and teens reappear as only a base to bigger mental issues.

Although poverty and race play a major role in a child’s life their experiences whether it

be good or bad tend to shape their life as an adult. Witnessing a constant traumatic lifestyle

exposes abuse to a young child who naively cannot defend themselves. Different styles of abuse

have only a slightly different effect on children. Verbal abuse breaks down a child’s confidence

much like racial trauma the child grows into a mindset that he/she is unable to prosper or face

challenges. “A child is born with the willingness to listen, a willingness to be wrong (to be

corrected) an ability to express anger. The child is then subjected to verbal abuse -- ‘You’re

stupid’ [..] ‘You can't do anything right’. Believing in parental rightness and having neither the

experience nor the inclination to fight such accusations the child accepts them as true” (Carter).
Being young there is not a clear distinguish between this is right or wrong or this is true or false ,

if a parent says anything they are deemed to be correct. In many occasions the parent is unaware

of the effect the verbal abuse has. It will later spark a cycle where the child becomes violent

believing that is all they are capable of doing correct and later on in their life passing the same

poor verbal communication to their child. This is an unhealthy mental state that children develop

unaware just by undergoing constant verbal abuse.

Experiences do not always have to be lived through , they can very well be the constant

viewing of actions. If a child constantly views a parent or older sibling performing an action it its

more than likely the child can be found performing the same act in a different environment.

Much like the abused becoming the abuser a child viewing violence and delinquency will reflect

similar habits. “They see violence in the home, in their schools or in the street, explains

Slowikowski. We have to address that. Allowing that trauma to go untreated causes juvenile

violence and delinquency issues as they get older” (Violent Children: A Juvenile Perspective).

The exhibited behavior of ongoing violence causes trauma in a child , a fear that the only way to

save their lives or have the opportunity to live to see another day was to demonstrate they were

just as capable, if not more, of being violent as the next person. The base of instability is

demonstrated within this cycle of viewing and committing an action , a child is not as mature to

think for themselves and their unstable mind is filled with violent upbringings. As they grow the

ability to think for themselves they justify their choices based on the ones they viewed

previously. More than half of the children in confinement or under the justice system have

mental health issues (Violent Children: A Juvenile Perspective). Constant behavioral outburst ,

changes and violence are all symptoms of a child struggling mentally.

Developing psychological problems for children tends to be simple compared to getting a

child into a healthy sustainable environment. “Children and adolescents are far more vulnerable

and susceptible to psychological and emotional problems than any other age group today” (Child

And Adolescent Mental Health). Due to all the standing factors, many previously stated, children

have been spiking a growth in mental health issues. Many adults whether it be family or school

administration have children with mental health issues that need attention go unnoticed. One

might think that because a child is young and doesn’t have the same responsibilities as an adult

that their childhood lives are care and trouble free (Child And Adolescent Mental Health). That

however isn’t the case at any age a child can feel as though they need help to cope. A child is

deprived of the right to grow into a well rounded person when growing into environments that

inflict constant mental blocks. “Teens who develop a mental disorder are also prone to having

had other biological challenges” (Illness In Children). Not only is one struggling with mental

health but also as an impact of this, struggling with the battles of reality, growing up and facing

obstacles.

A child is born everyday. And everyday a child should be reminded that the life they live

or were born into does not determine who or what they have the ability of becoming. Allowing a

child to grow with a stable and good mental health could open endless opportunities and doors

for the future. Mental health in children do exist , they base back on many different things

whether it be the violence they witness , the abuse they experience , or the trauma they have

lived through. All play apart in the bigger picture of creating a psychological problem. Just as

these things work hand in hand one must work hand in hand to save the children!