Drug addiction has a devastating impact on loved ones, especially when there are children involved, and the sights are often tragic to witness. According to a survey conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), there are around 8.7 million children under the age of 17 living with at least one drug-addicted parent. The challenges these children face involve difficulties academically, lower social status, hectic familial changes, and an increased likelihood of becoming an addict themselves.
Emotional
The parent-child bond is extremely important because it makes room for love, encouragement, and connectedness. However, addicted parents are often removed from their environment, rendering them unable to provide the proper care, attention, and love a child deserves. Eventually, the prolonged distancing leads to mistrust, both in their parents and the wider world.
Mental
Whether a parent is addicted to drugs or alcohol, the home environment is steered by chaos, which brings instability to a child’s life. In this environment, children often don’t do well at school, which has long-term effects on their social development and future. Even if a child defies the odds and does well academically, their prospects can still be harmed because of an absence of support at home.
Children that grow up with drug-addicted parents are often on a fast track to addiction. Even if they don’t take up drugs, there’s a possibility they’ll be drawn towards partners that have an addiction of some form.
Read also: Does smoking weed make your teeth yellow?
Physical
The severity of a drug-addicted parent’s impact on the physical aspect of their children depends on when the substance abuse starts. For example, if a mother uses drugs during pregnancy, their child faces enormous risks including:
- Underdeveloped growth
- Attention, attachment, or mental disorders
- Malformed organs
- Various other physical issues
When parents are under the influence, they aren’t in a position to provide basic care needs to their children, which may lead to mental and physical disorders. As well as this, a child can suffer from severe anxiety brought on by having a drug-addicted parent, which may lead to migraines, panic attacks, and asthma.
People under the influence often lose sight of their moral compass. Unfortunately, when this scenario involves parents and children, it can lead to physical, verbal, or even sexual abuse. Children living in such circumstances typically feel an overwhelming sense of isolation and loneliness because they aren’t receiving the standard of care they deserve.
Act Now
If you or someone you know is battling addiction, then it’s never too late to take control and reach out for professional rehabilitation. The road to recovery won’t be easy, but your child will feel the benefits because it will likely turn their life around. Once you’ve finished with initial rehab, you can integrate Self-Care Strategies For Addiction Treatment, which will help prevent you from slipping back into old habits.
Children growing up with drug-addicted parents are ill-fated from the start because they don’t have the love, care, and support that’s essential for growth. Luckily, it’s never too late to make changes and overcome demons, but it will call for hard work and dedication.
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