The Impact of War on Children and Families
was presented at the Herrick District Library in Holland on June 11, 2008 by Professor Jean McFadden of Grand Valley State University.
Mobilization of troops for the war in Iraq and Afghanistan was correlated with increases in rates of child maltreatment and domestic violence. The impact of deployment and multiple deployments heightened stress on families. Children become traumatized by the war by seeing images on TV, observing parental anxiety, reading newspapers or magazines, and hearing adults or other children talking about the war. It is difficult, if not impossible, to protect children from hearing details about the war. The trauma of military personnel who've seen combat was related to trauma symptoms in children including nightmares, bedwetting, school difficulties, and anxieties about separation.
To date over 4000 US military personnel have lost their lives in Afghanistan and Iraq. 700,000 children in the US have at least one parent deployed overseas. Of these children 90,000 to 100,000 have special needs.
The suicide rate of Iraq veterans is twice that of non veterans according to a CBS investigation. Over 100,000 veterans suffer from post traumatic stress syndrom. The impact of military service on women includes difficulties with attachment when separated from their children, loss of custody in some cases, and a greater risk of returning with complicated emotional issues due to rape or sexual abuse by their military colleagues.
While there are 1200 uniformed social workers and other mental health professionals working with military and their families, professional support is not adequet or enough. Support is needed from a concerned community that reaches out to veterans, children and their families. For example, many severely injured veterans are cared for by their elderly parents who exhaust their retirement savings to provide the help needed.
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2 comments:
As I walked home from this event this thought was banging around in my head: We are NOT counting everything that needs to be counted as costs for this war. Professor McFadden's story about the young mother and wife of a soldier that must rely on WIC for buying food is a COST for this war. Elderly parents who are caring for their soldier children who are severely wounded is a cost for this war, even costs incurred and time spent in dealing with soldiers' children who are disruptive in school MUST BE COUNTED.....
These hidden costs must be recognized as a cost of doing war.
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