One can simply define neglect as:
Not Engaging in the Growth and Love of the Associated Child which over Time proves disastrous.
Piya as a young child never had the presence of her mother or father in her life. Her father was drunk all the time and could hardly hold a job. Her mother was on drugs and never noticed if Piya was there or not. There was no one to take Piya to school. She walked herself to school from a very small age. She was not cared for with regards to food and basic hygiene. She often felt lonely even though her parents were there in the house. She felt she didn’t have anyone to communicate her emotions to. She often kept things to herself without having to share her inner most feelings and fears.
This led her to getting depressed and one day she thought she would try what her mother took so it would take the pain away of what she was going through.
The neighbours informed the police and Piya was immediately shifted to a foster home. Piya took a long time to open up with counsellors and her foster parents. Over the years, Piya with regular counselling and care from the foster parents, thrived in school and was part of many educational committees and social groups.
Let’s look at some areas where the child could get affected:
Emotional and physical bonding is key and vital to a child’s growth. Research has shown that if neglect is prevalent in the child’s journey of life, then there could be other problems like post-traumatic stress disorder, low self-esteem, attachment issues and problematic social relationships.
There are some behavioural consequences as well. Victims of neglect often exhibit behavioural dysfunction. They engage in sexual dysfunctions and practices, alcohol and drug use, criminal behaviour, to name a few.
There could be developmental issues. Some studies have shown reduced intellectual functioning and reduced cognitive responses in neglected children. This leads to dysfunctional thinking. Neglected children also feel they are a burden to society. Some of course may turn to drastic measures of indulging in criminal behaviour to feel themselves as worthy and valued.
It affects the child psychologically; it could make the child feel extremely devalued and underappreciated. He or she would be afraid to venture out and try new things. They would be self-demeaning and overtly critical of themselves.
It is vital to help children like these with counselling care as it will harm the child even more if this is delayed. It is important to make the child feel he is important enough to be heard. This can be helped with regular counselling intervention.
What are some key points that a parent can do to help a child?
1. If there is something that is threatening the life of a child then it is important to get that sorted – get professional help to sort out issues that you might be having. Don’t assume that it’s your problem and it will not affect the life of the children in the home.
2. Being available for your child is a sheer necessity these days. It is important to give the child the feeling of being wanted and cared for. If it is not given then there could be developmental and behavioural issues that develop which will be harder to handle later on in life.
3. When there are visible markers of dysfunction, make sure they are addressed by a professional. If it is unattended, then the issues will fester and manifest into something else later on in life.
4. There has always been a stigma regarding mental health and getting help with a mental health professional, but the many success stories of individual prove otherwise. It is worth going the extra mile now then having to be sorry later.
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