Stressors are everywhere, and occur naturally and sometimes forcibly in all our lives. There are many ramifications of these stresses and how we cope and survive is dependent on many factors including support from others.
The stressor I chose to examine is war and its affects on children's biosocial, cognitive, and psychosocial development. War, unfortunately is currently affecting us all. Some children are sheltered, protected and far removed from war, others know too much about the violence and suffering. Because the topic of war is so broad in its stresses, I chose to focus on the affects of a parent/parents leaving on deployment here in the United States.
I have several children in my class this year who's parent/parents have been previously deployed and some who are anticipating deployment or currently waiting for a loved one to return. War and military life can bring so many hardships to a family with young children.
A resource for families understanding the affects of deployment on children and families:
http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/os/homefront/homefront.pdf
A resource for supporting military families in your community:
http://www.operationmilitarykids.org/public/home.aspx
It is heartwarming to share how communities rally around families affected by deployment and how they aid one another in coping with, and compensating for, the stress of war. I have experienced children and their parents learning new routines within a single parent household and how they became dependent on caregivers for emotional support and love. I have held mother's as they cry, aided father's in making a video message or video journals for their children prior to deployment, I have cooked meals for an over-stressed newly single mom and three children, I have helped make hundreds of cards and letters for service men and women in our military over the past 10 years. We reside in North Carolina and are surrounded by three large military bases. This stress affects at least two families in our program each year, sometimes many more. We offer parent workshops on how to help their children cope when a mommy or daddy leaves for months at a time.
Later this week I will post on the stress of war and its affects on children in other countries.
Amy, I think what you are doing to help these families is awesome and very inspiring. I know they appreciate all you do. Keep up the good work, and thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteAs an individual that does not have a direct link with those that serve our country, I had not given this one much thought. Thank you for expanding my "vision." Keep up the great work that you do with all of the children and families!
ReplyDelete