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Exposure to parental SUDs during childhood also can have dire consequences for children. Compared to children of parents who do not abuse alcohol or drugs, children of parents who do, and who also are in the child welfare system, are more likely to experience physical, intellectual, social, and emotional problems. Among the difficulties in providing services to these children is that problems affected or compounded by their parents' SUDs might not emerge until later in their lives.68
This section summarizes some of the consequences of SUDs on childhood development, including a disruption of the bonding process; emotional, academic, and developmental problems; lack of supervision; parentification; social stigma; and adolescent substance use and delinquency.
Disruption of the Bonding Process
When mothers or fathers abuse substances after delivery, their ability to bond with their child—so important during the early stages of life—may be weakened. In order for an attachment to form, it is necessary that caregivers pay attention to and notice their children's attempts to communicate. Parents who use marijuana, for example, may have difficulty picking up their babies' cues because marijuana dulls response time and alters perceptions. When parents repeatedly miss their babies' cues, the babies eventually stop providing them. The result is disengaged parents with disengaged babies. These parents and babies then have difficulty forming a healthy, appropriate relationship.
Neglected children who are unable to form secure attachments with their primary caregivers may:
- Become more mistrustful of others and may be less willing to learn from adults
- Have difficulty understanding the emotions of others, regulating their own emotions, or forming and maintaining relationships with others
- Have a limited ability to feel remorse or empathy, which may mean that they could hurt others without feeling their actions were wrong
- Demonstrate a lack of confidence or social skills that could hinder them from being successful in school, work, and relationships
- Demonstrate impaired social cognition, which is awareness of oneself in relation to others as well as of others' emotions. Impaired social cognition can lead a person to view many social interactions as stressful.69
Emotional, Academic, and Developmental Problems
Children who experience either prenatal or postnatal drug exposure are at risk for a range of emotional, academic, and developmental problems. For example, they are more likely to:
- Experience symptoms of depression and anxiety
- Suffer from psychiatric disorders
- Exhibit behavior problems
- Score lower on school achievement tests
- Demonstrate other difficulties in school.
These children may behave in ways that are challenging for biological or foster parents to manage, which can lead to inconsistent caregiving and multiple alternative care placements.
Positive social and emotional child development generally has been linked to nurturing family settings in which caregivers are predictable, daily routines are respected, and everyone recognizes clear boundaries for acceptable behaviors.70 Such circumstances often are missing in the homes of parents with SUDs. As a result, extra supports and interventions are needed to help children draw upon their strengths and maximize their natural potential despite their home environments. Protective factors, such as the involvement of other supportive adults (e.g., extended family members, mentors, clergy, teachers, neighbors), may help mitigate the impact of parental SUDs.
Lack of Supervision
The search for drugs or alcohol, the use of scarce resources to pay for them, the time spent in illegal activities to raise money for them, or the time spent recovering from hangovers or withdrawal symptoms can leave parents with little time or energy to care properly for their children. These children frequently do not have their basic needs met and often do not receive appropriate supervision. In addition, rules about curfews and potentially dangerous activities may not be enforced or are enforced haphazardly. As a result, SUDs are often a factor in neglect cases.
Parentification
As children grow older, they may become increasingly aware that their parents cannot care for them. To compensate, the children become the caregivers of the family, often extending their caregiving behavior to their parents as well as younger siblings. This process is labeled "parentification."71
Parentified children carry a great deal of anxiety and sometimes go to great lengths to control or to eliminate their parents' use of drugs or alcohol. They feel responsible for running the family. These feelings are reinforced by messages from the parents that the children cause the parents' SUDs or are at fault in some way if the family comes to the attention of authorities. Sometimes these children must contact medical personnel in the case of a parent's overdose, or they may be left supervising and caring for younger children when their parents are absent while obtaining or abusing substances.
Social Stigma
Adults with SUDS may engage in behaviors that embarrass their children and may appear disinterested in their children's activities or school performance. Children may separate themselves from their parents by not wanting to go home after school, by not bringing friends to the house, or by not asking for help with homework. These children may feel a social stigma attached to certain aspects of their parents' lives, such as unemployment, homelessness, an involvement with the criminal justice system, or SUD treatment.
Adolescent Substance Use and Delinquency
Adolescents whose parents have SUDs are more likely to develop SUDs themselves. Some adolescents mimic behaviors they see in their families, including ineffective coping behaviors such as using drugs and alcohol. Many of these children also witness or are victims of violence. It is hypothesized that substance abuse is a coping mechanism for such traumatic events.72 Moreover, adolescents who use substances are more likely to have poor academic performance and to be involved in criminal activities. The longer children are exposed to parental SUD, the more serious the negative consequences may be for their overall development and well-being.
Many people view SUDs as a phenomenon that leads to or exacerbates the abuse or neglect of children. Research also suggests, however, that being victimized by child abuse, particularly sexual abuse, is a common precursor of SUDs.73 Sometimes, victims of abuse or neglect "self-medicate" (i.e., drink or use drugs to escape the unresolved trauma of the maltreatment).74 One study found that women with a history of childhood physical or sexual abuse were nearly five times more likely to use street drugs and more than twice as likely to abuse alcohol as women who were not maltreated.75 In another study, childhood abuse predicted a wide range of problems, including lower self-esteem, more victimization, more depression, and chronic homelessness, and indirectly predicted drug and alcohol problems.76
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Source -https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/usermanuals/substanceuse/chapterthree.cfm#childhood
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