Common Struggles of Children from Alcoholic/Drug-Addicted Homes
- Guessing at what is normal.
- Difficulty having fun.
- Judging themselves mercilessly.
- Difficulty with emotional relationships.
- Feeling "different" from other people.
- Tendency to be impulsive.
- Either super responsible or super irresponsible.
- Desperately seeking approval and affirmation.
- Suffering from chronic anxiety.
- Lacking self discipline.
- Compulsive liars.
- Suffering from a critical deficiency of self-respect.
- Fear and mistrust for authority figures.
Child Abuse Clearly Defined
The terms and circumstances, which define child abuse and neglect, are clearly defined at a federal level. According to the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act, the mistreatment of children is defined as:
Any recent act or failure to act on the part of a parent or caregiver, which results in death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse or exploitation, or an act or failure to act which presents and imminent risk of serious harm.
What could this mean in the case of children put in danger by way of drug abuse in the home? While even just exposing children to dangerous and illegal drugs could easily be considered maltreatment, additional abuse or neglect may manifest in any of the following ways:
* Violence or verbal abuse resulting from being drunk or high
* Sexual abuse or behavior which makes a child feel uncomfortable
* Forcing a child to hide an adult’s drug abuse or alcoholism
* Consistently leaving a child alone at home
* Consistently ignoring a child or their needs; lack of attention
The Long Term Effects of Childhood Exposure to Drug Use
Studies exist and have been completed which focus on the long-term effects of substance abuse on the youth who are present. A shocking number of currently detained prison inmates and rehab attendees admit they had a tumultuous upbringing, having experienced some sort of neglect, or physical, sexual or verbal abuse. Further, these individuals were aware of criminality or substance abuse in their environment, setting a powerfully negative example for such youth.
It is wholly observable that children who grow up amongst drug abuse, alcoholism and criminality tend to join into these activities. This creates something of a cyclic trend, making those children who are born into underprivileged homes and neighborhoods more likely to remain ‘in the system’ than those children who are born of better circumstances.