Emotional Damages and Consequences 1 Running head: Foster Children

Foster Children: Emotional Damages and Consequences for Being in the System

by Celeste G. Angulo

A Paper Presented in Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements of [PSY 313 Ethics] August, 2013 Address: 1898 Islas Canarias Mexicali, BC, 21330: Phone: 686 168 6083 E-mail: celestegangulo@hotmail.com Instructor: Stephen Condit Abstract

Emotional Damages and Consequences 2 This article mentions the different ways that the foster care system can be harmful to children and adults in the long run. It mentions the different damages and consequences of becoming a foster child and how the detachment of your mother is very harmful to your emotions.

Emotional Damages and Consequences 3 Foster Children: Emotional Damages and Consequences for Being in the System

Foster care is system in which children are taken to or are a part of when they can no longer live in their home due to violence, negligence, abuse, etc. According to Koller, the goal of foster care is to implement a plan for permanency for each child. The plan is intended to last through the child/youths adulthood and with the child out of foster care, agency custody, and state oversight. But, what does this whole system emotionally do to children who are taken away from their parents without any time to say goodbye? According to Miller, more than 500000 children are in foster care in the United States. Most of these children have been the victims of abuse and prolonged neglect and have not experienced a nurturing, stable environment during their early life. Many children are taken away because they are not being cared for in their homes or are wondering the streets without any adult supervision and are then picked up by the police and taken to the Foster Care system. Something that happens to children in their early years of life is that their anatomic brain structures that govern personality traits, learning process, and coping with stress and emotions are established, strengthened and made permanent. (Miller, 2000) Psychological care is necessary for all these children that are being impacted by all the drama and negative things that happen around them. Another thing that Miller mentions is that all of the nerves connections that are being formed during that time of their life are much influenced all the negative environmental conditions. Throughout my major Ive learned many things related to children and how having or not having an attachment to your mother can bring some problems to your life as you grow up. Ive come to learn that when a child is born, a mother forgets instantly the pain she went through when delivering her beautiful baby. The moment that baby is put on the mothers chest and they stare at

Emotional Damages and Consequences 4 each other, they create a very powerful connection that no other person can do expect for those two beings, a mother and a child. It is called the attachment and can only be made by a mother or the person or people that are the most close to the baby. Being ripped away from your mother as a baby or a child is a very traumatic moment for both beings. Attachment refers to this relationship between 2 people and forms the basis for long-term relationships or bonds with other persons. Attachment is an active processit can be secure or insecure, maladaptive or productive. Attachment to a primary caregiver is essential to the development of emotional security and social conscience (Miller, 2000). Many things can happen to children whose attachment process is disrupted. They are more likely to be angry people and grow up taking their rage and pain out on society and other family members also. In my opinion, I dont think taking away children from their families is a healthy choice at all. If in some way the children are being abused or not taken care of, the government should somehow provide a help to those parents and maybe even force them to take parenting classes and other things that they can come up with. By doing this, there wouldnt be as many fostered children and not as much poverty in the world or in society. Another thing that happens to kids of teenagers after getting out of foster home and becoming 18 is that they are just left alone in the world. They dont receive their monthly checks anymore and they have to somehow provide for themselves wherever they are. Most of them are later on found in jails, prison, homeless or dead. Its a shame how society looks down on them when they are the ones who are not being compassionate for their fellow brothers. I think that the government must do something about it because even though we think that theyre going to be fine and that they dont bother us so why should we bother them, they

Emotional Damages and Consequences 5 are still human being and if we think about it we wouldnt want to be in that position at all. Many things can happen to these children when they get out of the system, they can either be harmful for us or for them. According to Weldon, as a result of experiencing physical abuse and neglect as a very young child and receiving no treatment for reactive attachment disorder, the effects at times may be very severe. There are some cases in which these foster children grow up to become sociopaths and a severe threat to society. They may murder and rape countless victims as a result of never developing a conscience in the first few years of life, having no concept of right and wrong. But, with the help of psychological therapy however, the results may be quite different and that is why there should more infant psychologists in the world, to help those who need it. The word is that after you turn 18 or you age out there is no more help. According to Rowe, this phenomenon, known as aging out of foster care, is standard for nearly 600 wards of the state that turn 18 each year, and the results are no surprise: Former foster youth have off-thecharts rates of homelessness and post-traumatic stress. They end up in jail, prison or hospital emergency rooms far more frequently than other teens their age. Many depend on welfare and food stamps. Most never attend college. I think there is a huge ethical problem concerning the government on the issue of not supporting the foster children after they are 18 years of age. Its like they dont even care what happens to them afterwards. According to myself, Ive had an experience of my own related to foster care. I was 13 when my parents lived in Mexico and I didnt want to go to school there so my mother asked my aunt to take us in, my sister, my brother, and I. We went to live with her to Los Angeles to start out the school year and we were fine for a couple of months, but then shortly after I started to miss my mother so much. Being away from here was the worst decision I could have made. Even

Emotional Damages and Consequences 6 though I had my two siblings there, I still felt very much alone and I missed my mother so much, to the extent that she had to cross the border illegally to come and stay with us so we could finish up the school year. I felt like the happiest girl on the planet the day she got there, and I hugged her for the longest time in the world. My brother and sister felt the same way, and it wasnt that my aunt treated us bad; she was actually very nice with us, but there were times when she thought we wouldnt know, and she would take her children to go eat at a restaurant and wouldnt take us even though my parents would send her money for us at all times. She was a little selfish at times. I didnt really feel like I was at a house with family members; I actually felt very much alone and I would cry myself to bed every night just wishing my mother would come and take us away. My brother and sister felt the same way as I did because they would also miss my mother very much. I remember that we would also miss my dad at times but I think that, the love of a mother towards her children does not compare at all with the love of any other person in the world. Being away from her is like if something thats a part of you is missing and you can barely get by without it. Honestly, I dont know what I would do or where I would be if something ever happened to my mother and she was no longer here. That was an experience that I would never want to go through again in my life. Many people may agree with me when I say that people on the streets that are homeless are probably derived from broken homes and may have been part of the foster care system at some point in their life. Its a very sad thing to see especially in our country, the United States, where there is supposedly equality for everyone living here. So, finishing this off, I would like to state that not matter who you are in life and what you become you should be grateful to have your parents and to cherish them no matter what happens, because becoming a foster child is a tough experience and not a lot of people get through it without any help.

Emotional Damages and Consequences 7 In conclusion, becoming a foster child is something you dont want to happen. Many consequences can occur form it, not only emotionally but also physically. Being detached form you mother as a child is something that can harm you for the rest of your life, but taking therapy for that can very much help. Also, when aging out of the foster care system doesnt work out, people either become druggies, go to jail, dont pursue school, homeless, etc. I am grateful to not be in those peoples shoe and am glad to have a place I can call home.

Emotional Damages and Consequences 8 References Angulo, C. (2013). Movie Review: Critical Thinking in White Oleander. PSY 313 Headlee, C. (2013). The Foster Care System: What Parents Wish We Knew. NPR. Retrieved from: http://www.npr.org/2013/03/21/174958972/the-foster-care-system-what-parentswish-we-knew Koller, L.(State Director) Foster Care Services. South Carolina Department of Social Services. Retrived from: https://dss.sc.gov/content/customers/protection/fcs/index.aspx Miller, P.; Gorski, P.; Borchers, D.; etc. (2000). Developmental Issues for Young Children in Foster Care. Dependent American Academy of Pediatrics. Retrieved from: http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/106/5/1145.full#content-block Rowe, C. (2013). Foster kids: Aged out and alone at 18. Crosscut Public Media: United States. Retrieved from: http://crosscut.com/2013/02/15/Kidsatrisk/112965/aged-out-and-alone18/ Weldon, C. (2002). Foster Care: A Psychological War. Retrieved August 2, 2013 from URL: http://www4.samford.edu/schools/artsci/scs/weldon.html