When children are separated from their families, they may experience prolonged distress that causes lasting problems in their lives. These problems can be in the form of anxiety and depression, drug use, eating disorders or a variety of other mental health difficulties. The problems typically arise either before, during or after the family separation. Some studies have found that children separated at an early age from their parents are more likely to experience these difficulties than children who were not separated from their parents until they were older.
Separation anxiety can also cause kids to become overly attached to the people they feel safest with, which can make it hard for them to trust others. This can cause a child to be fearful of leaving home, going to school or going on outings with friends, and can interfere with their normal daily life. Children who are very anxious about separating can have a hard time concentrating in school, and may miss out on extracurricular activities like sports teams or sleepovers. Their anxiety can prevent them from getting a job or even attending college, and it keeps them from being able to live on their own when they get older.
The good news is that most kids can learn to cope with separation anxiety, and it’s important for them to do so because it helps them to develop a sense of independence. Parents and other caregivers can help by giving kids clear, consistent and reassuring explanations about the reasons they have to separate from them. They can also set a strong example by being firm when they say goodbye and by returning at the times they promise. It’s also helpful to create quick, simple good-bye rituals, such as triple kisses or saying goodbye with a big smile.
If your child has separation anxiety, and you’re unable to resolve it with the help of your health visitor, you may be entitled to financial support to see a therapist. The therapist will teach you strategies to use at home, and can provide you with the tools to help your child overcome their separation anxiety.
When a child’s parent is convicted of a crime, and the government takes custody of the child, it is normal for them to worry that they will never see their parent again. This is why the government is required to follow a strict process when trying to reunify families.
But the process often goes wrong, and there are many obstacles to reunification, including the fact that there is no official database for tracking children who have been separated from their parents. Caitlin Dickerson, a reporter at the Atlantic, has written an article that makes it clear that this was intentional by officials who were behind the zero tolerance policy on family separation. She has interviewed dozens of immigration officials and reviewed thousands of pages of internal documents that have been turned over to her as part of a multiyear lawsuit against the Trump administration. child separation