Stress during childhood can greatly affect someone as they are growing up. I have seen some of this stress in my own personal life greatly affect a person’s life. One of my roommates grew up in a family where she was basically cut off from the world. She lived in the middle of nowhere, never leaved her family farm, was homeschooled, was not allowed to have friends and had no access to any type of media. No shock that this majorly affected her in her life. This isolation has made it hard for her to connect, hard to understand what the rest of us would call normal. And even though she has worked through a lot her major issues from her traumatic childhood, she still would rather stay home then go out.
The trauma has affected her after all http://helpguide.org/mental/emotional_psychological_ trauma.htm says this about trauma "Traumatic experiences in childhood can have a severe and long-lasting effect. Children who have been traumatized see the world as a frightening and dangerous place. When childhood trauma is not resolved, this fundamental sense of fear and helplessness carries over into adulthood, setting the stage for further trauma." Even though I see a lot of issues she has with her childhood, I am proud of all she has over-came and continues to overcome.
I decided to research Russia and find out some of the stressors Russian children go through. What I found is that Russia is the number one country for having trouble with alcohol abuse. This of course hard for the children in the country and affects them greatly. Children get involved with drugs and alcohol as young as 11 years old according to the website I found. Many outreaches have been started to help the children cope with issues they are facing without getting involved in alcohol. Hopefully over time the vicious circle of children being hurt by alcohol and drugs using alcohol and drugs to cope, will end.
If you want to know more about Russia, the website I found is :
http://www.confidentkids.com/Russia.htm#The Opportunity
I am thrilled to see that you chose Russia. I have often wondered about the children and their upbringing and your post gave me a little insignt. I think that people should be more open to talking about these things because if no one knows about it, then no help can be given.
ReplyDeleteI had an upbringing that had some similarities to your friend. I also grew up in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by no one but my family. My parents created an environment of co-dependency, where I didn't learn any skills to become independent. I have a very difficult time socializing and doing anything on my own. It is still a very difficult thing to overcome and I would still rather avoid uncomfortable situations than have to deal with them.
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