Effects+on+the+Children

In today’s society, many children are being raised in a home where they are consistently exposed to substance abuse. This exposure can be from a relative, sibling, or a parent. Abusing alcohol as a parent can cause the child phenomenal trauma. This behavior can have major effect on the child and can cause different issues to arise in the child. Problems such as mental illnesses or addiction can originate in these individuals childhood and can remain with them for the rest of their lives. Examples of the impact, being raised by a substance abuser can include:

__ 1. Mental Health __
==== One of the major areas these children can be effected in is mental health. When a parent abuses alcohol, the trauma their child endures often causes development of a mental illness. These mental illnesses can include anxiety, depression and symptoms of generalized stress (Bohman, 1990). These children have higher risk of depression because they often feel lonely and helpless. In extreme cases, these feelings could become suicidal thoughts or behavior. (Sher, 1997) These mental illnesses are often developed in the early stages of their childhood. However, if the child has not developed a mental illness, the chances are very high that they will develop one later in life. The risk is high because the individual carries the trauma they experienced as a child throughout their lives. (Mowbray, Bybee, Oyersman, MacFarlane & Bowersox, 2006) ====

__ 2. Social Skills __
==== The children of substance abusers often lack social skills. (Long, 2009) The lack of social skills in these individuals, can result in the inability to obtain close relationships. These issues may be due to the child lacking trust in people or having a low sense of self-esteem. (Hinrichs, DeFife & Westen, 1997) These children may feel uncomfortable having a friend over because they are embarrassed or nervous of what may happen at home. ====

__3. Problems at School__
==== These children can also display problems at school. Children with a substance abusing parent achieve significantly lower academic grades, and some end up repeating grades. In some cases, these children do not complete the necessities to achieve a high school diploma. The academic performance difficulties these children experience are result of lack of motivation, and stress regarding their home/family situation. (Bohman, 1990) These facts prove that this type of parental behavior has a direct impact of their child’s intellectual skills. (McGrath, 1999) These children also may display behavioral issues in their school environment. In some cases this is displayed through attention seeking or anger. These behaviors can be due to frustration the children hold towards the parents drinking, and lack of attention they receive. This frustration can result in aggression towards other children, and risk taking behaviors such as violence or stealing. These children are often referred to school counsellors. (Bohman, 1990) ====

__ 4. Following Their Parent’s Lead __
==== Due to the fact that a parent is often a child’s greatest role model and influencer, a parents drinking habit can relate to how their child chooses to drink in the future. Alcoholism often runs in families. Children of substance abusers are at higher risk of becoming an abuser of drugs or other substances. (Weintraub, 2007) Children with substance abusing parents are four times as likely to develop these problems themselves throughout their lifetime. In some cases these children may turn to alcohol as a coping method to deal with the issues with their parents, or the children are mirroring their role models. Statistics prove that more than 50% of alcoholics were once children of alcoholics. (NACoA, 2001) ====

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(Leah,2012)

__ 1. The Overly Responsible __
==== As an attempt to cope with their parents’ behavior some children may try to become their own parent. This can cause problems because the child is forced to grow up quickly and is never given time to be a kid. ====

__ 2. The Placater __
==== A child who becomes emotionally responsible for his or her family members is the placater. This child takes on the caring role, and is mainly interested in their family members’ emotions. This can negatively affect the child because of the lack of attention they give to their own emotions. ====

__ 3. The Adjuster __
==== The child whom alters their view to cope with their parent’s behavior is the adjuster. This child often claims to not be disturbed by the situation and often changes themselves, however being left feeling emotionally withdrawn. ====